Being Your Mother
by flyingorfalling
Summary: There are so many fics about Tony and Morgan out there that I decided to show some love to Pepper, so this series of one shots focuses solely on her and Morgan's relationship. Tony will sneak in there, too, sometimes, though. [AU, Tony lives.]
1. Strawberries, Singing, Sunrise

_**Summary:** Morgan is having trouble sleeping._

* * *

"Mommy?"

For the second night in a row, Pepper woke up to the voice of her five-year old daughter.

"Morgan? It's four in the morning."

The redhead sat up, rubbing her eyes. Morgan stood timidly next to the bed, hugging her stitched-up Iron Man doll to her chest. It was dark, but it was easy to see how nervous the little girl seemed.

"Sorry to wake you up again, Mommy."

"Don't apologize. Simply tell me why," Pepper said softly.

"I... I had a nightmare." She fiddled with the arm of her doll. "It scared me." She shuffled backwards. "Sorry, I'll go back to bed."

Pepper reached over and turned the bedside lamp on, and immediately saw what the moonlight had failed to reveal—a wet layer of tears covering her daughter's cheeks.

"Did you dream about Daddy?"

Morgan nodded, sniffling, and Pepper heaved a deep sigh, her chest rising up then falling. She blinked, her heart hammered, remembering all the times when she had had nightmares about Tony. Sometimes she still had them.

"Come here, sweetheart," she said, flipping back the covers and patting the mattress. "I am already awake and there is more than enough room in the bed for you."

Morgan's ears perked tentatively, then she crept to the bed, crawling on top and snuggling against her mother, her doll still cuddled to her chest.

Pepper turned off the lights and pulled the summer duvet up around them. She kissed the top of Morgan's head, once, twice, a hundred times. The feel of holding her daughter filled her heart with warmth, like the very first time she held her. That feeling would never go away. She still couldn't believe she and Tony had created such a beautiful, living thing.

"You know Daddy's just on his camping trip with your uncles. You don't have to be scared, baby," she whispered against her hair. "He'll be back on Monday, safe and sound."

"You promise?"

"I promise," Pepper answered, running a hand over Morgan's head while she rubbed her back with the other. "And you can wake me up anytime. Even if you have more than one bad dream a night."

"Really?" The girl tilted her head to look up at her mother.

"Yes, honey," Pepper said, smiling. "I will never be mad at you or send you back to bed, because I love you. And I love being your mommy, and you know what that means?"

Morgan shook her head.

"It means I will always, _always_ be there for you, day and night, whenever you need me." She traced her finger down her daughter's jawline with a warm smile. "Just like Daddy."

"Daddy's not here now."

Pepper laughed softly. "That's right. But, you know, sometimes parents need a little time away from their kids to recharge their batteries. And doing grown-up stuff really helps with that." A frown crinkled Morgan's forehead, and Pepper chuckled. "Maybe I should explain this to you some other time, when you're well rested."

"Can we do grown-up stuff?"

"What do you mean?"

"I wanna go camping."

"With your daddy and me?"

The toddler briefly stared at her stitched-up Iron Man doll, thinking about her father. Then she glanced back at her mother, shaking her head.

"No, you."

Pepper's face lit up with delighted surprise. "Only with me?"

"Yes."

"I would _love_ to go camping with you," she said, smiling.

Throwing her arms around her mother, Morgan hugged her fiercely, and Pepper nuzzled her hair, breathing in her young-girl smells of vanilla oil and strawberry-scented conditioner. She emitted a soft chuckle, thinking of the time when Morgan had wanted to know if she hated strawberries because she was allergic to them.

She had told her she didn't, that she in fact loved the smell of them, and she wished she could taste them. Then Morgan had admitted that strawberries were her favorite fruit. She'd wondered if it made her mother sad when she used strawberry-scented products for her hair—she called it 'washing her hair with strawberries.' _I don't want you to be sad when you smell my hair_, she'd explained, and Pepper had been smitten with her daughter's sensitive and empathetic ways. Her answer was simple: Not even strawberries could keep her away from her child.

"Why are you laughing, Mommy?" Morgan asked, her voice muffled against Pepper's chest.

"I was just thinking of the day when we talked about strawberries... When you asked me if I hated them, and if you could still use strawberry shampoo or conditioner for your hair. Do you remember that?"

"I love strawberries."

"I know," Pepper said, giggling.

"You have a favorite fruit?"

"I'm not sure. Maybe mangos?"

"And Daddy?"

"I have never asked your father what his favorite fruit is, and I still haven't managed to figure it out. Should we ask him?"

Morgan's head shot up suddenly.

"He's probably already asleep, but we can try to reach him. Maybe he'll pick up."

The little girl sat up. Her eyes were shining and she was bubbling over with excitement.

Switching on the bedside lamp, Pepper grabbed her phone and called her husband, and it didn't take long for Tony to pick up. He looked sleepy, hair tousled, and he yawned loudly, rubbing his tired eyes. There was the sound of snoring in the background.

"Why are you calling? Is everything okay? Did anything happen? Is Morgan okay? Are _you_ okay?"

"We're fine," she said with a chuckle. "Did I wake you?"

"No, not really," Tony mumbled. "D'you hear that? The last few days I've been trying to think of a way to stop that man from sawing logs, but now I'm tempted to just suffocate him in his sleep."

Pepper laughed, then she smiled at him. "I miss you," she told him. "But I'm glad you're having fun."

"Not as much fun as I could have being in bed with you," he quipped, holding the phone closer to his face so Pepper would definitely be able to see the look in his eyes—she did.

"I'm not alone, honey," she replied, smirking.

"Oh..." he muttered. "So then, where's my Maguna?"

He could hear her giggling, but she was burying her face against Pepper's chest. So Tony called out for her, stretching the A at the end of her nickname, and her soft giggles turned into laughter. When Morgan finally looked right into the camera, nestling her head on her mother's bosom, he smiled.

"There you are."

"Hi, Daddy!"

She smiled at her father, her fingers carefully skimming the phone's screen as though she wanted to touch Tony's face. Stroking Morgan's hair, Pepper bent down to kiss the top of her head while Tony watched with an even bigger smile on his face, and a heart full of love. She was such a great mother.

"So you're in Mommy's bed?"

He looked back at his daughter, and she nodded.

"Had another nightmare?"

Her head moved slowly, nodding.

"Oh, Morgan..." He sighed deeply. "Look at me, I'm alive. I'm okay. And you really don't have to worry about me, like, _at all_, because Daddy's having a really great time in the woods." Holding his prosthetic arm into the camera, Tony grinned. "Caught the biggest fish with this thing today. I should show you. You know, I did this, and then I wrestled the beast like this, and then..."

Watching her father make all those silly grimaces and gestures, as he told her about his encounter with the fish, Morgan started giggling.

"Who needs a fishing rod when you can catch a fish with your bare hands? It was amazing!"

"We get it... You're a hero," Pepper mocked him, smirking.

He smirked back at her. Seeing her face through the phone always reminded him of how much it sucked not to be able to touch her. He loved going on these camping trips with the guys, but he never stopped thinking about his girls.

"I miss you, Daddy," Morgan said, her voice filled with a hint of sadness.

"I miss you too, my sweet child. But I'll be home soon. And you should go back to sleep. It's way past your bedtime. Listen to your mama."

"Your daughter's got a question for you and I'm sure she can't sleep until you've given her an answer."

"What is it?"

"Your favorite fruit," Morgan said.

"You wanna know what my favorite fruit is?"

She nodded.

"That's easy... Your mother's delicious—"

"Tony!" Pepper glared at her husband, warning him to not even think about finishing that sentence.

"What?" Morgan wondered.

"You know, your mom loves bananas, and the bigger the better. She likes to peel the banana and then eat it."

Tony looked at Pepper, his eyes telling her that he was allowed to have a little fun. It had been three days without her. Two nights in a cozy tent without her, to snuggle up to, to touch and make love to. And now she called him, in the middle of the night, looking all sexy, with her hair tousled from sleep and a loose shirt that had slipped off her shoulder at one side, exposing parts of her breast.

"Do you know that your mother can take a banana all the way up into her mouth?"

Pepper hated that he was so funny. She was trying so hard to keep a straight face. "Will you please just answer her question?" she said, laughing.

Tony chuckled, then focused on his daughter again—she was already starting to think that her mother may love bananas more than mangoes after all.

"To be honest, Morgan, I haven't really thought about it, so I'm not entirely sure. But here's an idea... When I'm home, I'm going to taste every fruit that exists in the world and then tell you which one I like most. Is that cool? We can do it together. Maybe there _is_ something that you love even more than strawberries."

"No."

"No, there is not, or no, you don't like my idea?" Tony frowned.

"I love strawberries most."

"Strawberries are the best!"

"Was that Happy?" Pepper asked confused.

"Yes, that was me," Happy said.

"Yes, that's him," Tony answered.

"Hey, Uncle Happy!" Morgan shouted, waving her hand, as his figure appeared on camera.

"Hey, squirt!"

"Begone, snoring beauty! Let me see my daughter," Tony complained, pushing him away gently. "Go sleep."

"I would, if you'd finally stop talking," he grunted. "'Though I don't think I can sleep with that haunting image now inside my head."

"What image?"

"Pepper… bananas… her _mouth_?" Happy screwed up his face in disgust. "I can only hope I don't dream about it."

"I hope I do," Tony said, cackling.

"Oh God!" Pepper let out, smiling apologetically at Morgan who seemed more confused than ever. "I think this is the moment where we should leave you two alone. Come on, say goodnight to your daddy, sweetie."

Kissing the screen of Pepper's phone, Morgan told Tony she loved him. He blew her a kiss, wishing her sweet dreams. Then he looked at his wife, giving her one of those smiles that he knew would make her instantly smile back. He loved when her smile was the last thing he saw before closing his eyes. He mouthed, I love you, and she said it back to him, with a look in her eyes, not a word. He understood, like he always did when they conveyed so much of what they were thinking with just a quiet, simple gaze.

When Pepper ended the call and put the phone away, Morgan was still lying on her chest.

"Are you feeling better? You think you can sleep now?"

"Mhm-hm," Morgan mumbled.

Lights out, Pepper settled down in bed, one hand around Morgan's back, the other touching the small arm that lay on her stomach. She closed her eyes, just waiting for her daughter to speak up, because she knew there was something still bothering her.

"Mommy?"

Pepper had to smirk—of course she was right. "Yes, baby?"

"Can I have a brother?"

"What?" Pepper's eyes opened in shock.

"A bro–ther." Morgan stressed each syllable of the word to make sure her mother would understand her this time.

"You want a... like a real... You want us to have a baby?"

"Yes," the girl answered, turning to look at her.

"W–Why?"

"I don't need a reason."

Pepper laughed out loud. "That's what your daddy would say..."

"I'm old enough to be a big sister," Morgan argued.

"You're not the only one being a little old," Pepper mused, as she ran a hand through her hair. She pulled her daughter into a hug and sighed. "Is it okay, if we talk about this some other time and not..." She looked at the clock. "At 4.30 in the morning."

Morgan stared at her mother, knitting her eyebrows, obviously thinking about how much she wanted to have this conversation or if it could wait.

"Please, honey... I'm really tired."

"What do I get?"

"Excuse me?" Pepper chuckled, her eyes widening in surprise.

"For waiting."

"You know this is extortion?"

Morgan nodded, grinning with pride. She knew all about that word, thanks to her father.

"Well, you're not getting any juice pops... That may work with your father, but not with me."

"I don't want juice pops."

"What _do_ you want then?"

The toddler put her hand up to her mouth, as though she was holding a microphone, and silently moved her lips.

"Morgan H. Stark, it is almost dawn. We are _not_ going to sing kara—" God, those adorable, big brown puppy eyes were an irresistible force. "Fine," Pepper groaned. "But just one_... One_ song, and then it's bedtime for you, you little monster."

Squealing, Morgan jumped off the bed and ran to her room. Pepper had barely gotten to her feet when the child came back, carrying the small karaoke machine that Scott had given her as a little apology gift for dragging her father into the time travel mess.

"So, what are we singing?"

She was hoping her daughter would pick an upbeat song that would make her dance so hard she'd be exhausted later, but with this ball of energy, she could never be sure. That girl was relentless, which was no surprise knowing who her daddy was.

Grabbing the microphone, Morgan called for the AI. "FRIDAY, play _Let It Go_."

"Why did I even ask," Pepper wondered, as she took the other microphone, and grinned, shaking her head.

About an hour later, they were lying side by side on the floor, sweating, giggling, and panting out of breath. The redhead rolled onto her side facing the little girl, who was holding her tummy to ease the pain from laughing so much. Tears were rolling down her face. Pepper wiped away her own tears, then reached out to stroke Morgan's cheek.

"You should really be in bed," she said, sighing.

Morgan looked at her, and, in a moment of silence, raised one hand and stroked Pepper's hair away from her face. Cupping her cheeks, she smiled, slowly drawing her mother's face closer to hers. She stared into her eyes. It was a long and deep stare, and the intensity with which she was staring at her, moved Pepper to tears. She only ever saw that much love and affection in another person's eyes when she was looking at Tony.

"Mommy loves you so much, baby girl," she whispered, her soft smile making her face glow.

Morgan pecked her mother's lips in response, and said, "I love singing with you."

"Me too," Pepper answered, stroking her cheeks. "But you know what else I think you will love?"

Morgan shook her head.

"Watching the sunrise."

"I thought I should sleep." Morgan giggled.

"Well, even mommies can change their minds," she said with a grin. "Your dad and I used to watch the sunrise all the time when you were still in my tummy."

"Why?"

"Because… Because for a long, long time, I was always worried I'd never even get to have another day with your father. So to see the sun rise over lake, with him by my side, was..." She paused, swallowing, the words bringing back bad memories, her throat suddenly so dry it was painful.

Her silence encouraged Morgan to speak up.

"Special?"

Pepper nodded and sniffed back a tear, smiling, as she ran a hand through Morgan's hair. "Yes, baby... It was very special. It still is. We just don't do it as often anymore."

"I have never seen a sunrise. Only pictures."

"Then it's about time that you do, don't you think?"

Morgan nodded her head vigorously, the thought exciting her.

* * *

Pepper sat down on the two-person swing chair out on the deck. Morgan leaned into her open arms, loving the feel of snuggling against her mother's chest. The sounds of a few early birds lulled her, along with the gentle movement of the seat. She cuddled her Iron Man doll, resting her head against Pepper's shoulder. Pepper drew a light summer blanket over them that she and Tony used to keep them warm when nights were cold. It was almost sunrise, that one moment where the sky was clear and cloudless before the sun lifted above the horizon and threw her first long, golden lance on the shimmering lake.

"How long do we have to wait?" Morgan asked.

"Only a few more minutes, I think," Pepper answered, smiling at her. "Just be patient, honey."

The little girl looked out at the lake, yawning, barely able to keep her eyes open.

"Can you sing?"

"Don't you think we've done enough singing for tonight?" Pepper said, laughing.

"Please, Mommy," Morgan begged, "Until the sun comes up."

She sighed and snuggled even closer to her, and Pepper wrapped her arm tighter around her daughter, stroking her shoulder, and then her hair. She started singing _Landslide_. It was the first song she could think of in that moment. When she was only half way through the song, the sun began to rise. She halted, gasping in awe, then looked down at her child.

"I have seen this so many times and it still takes my breath away," she said softly. "Do you like it?"

There was no response.

"Sweetie?"

Then, there was the sound of snoring.

"So much for your first sunrise..." Pepper laughed quietly in her throat, suppressing it from coming into her mouth. "Well, I guess, there's always tomorrow, huh?"

She squirmed to get out of the toddler's embrace and bent down until she got hold under Morgan's arms. Then she lifted her slowly up into her arms and went back inside. As she was putting her daughter to bed and tucking her in, the girl moved her lips, without opening her eyes.

"Mommy?"

"Shh, it's alright, baby," Pepper whispered, kissing her forehead. "Just go back to sleep."

"I love you," she mumbled, rolling onto her side.

"I love you, too, sleepyhead."

Smiling, Pepper stroked her hair, thinking.

No fruit could ever taste sweeter than the fruits of a daughter's love, no sunrise ever be more awe-inspiring, and more beautiful, than her child. Getting to be Morgan's mother, and being loved by her with all of her heart and unconditionally—motherhood—was the greatest blessing in her life.


	2. Takin' Care Of Business, Part I

**_Summary: _**_Pepper brings her daughter to work._

* * *

Tony stepped into the shower behind her, his soft skin merging with Pepper's as he enveloped her with his muscular arms. He brushed his lips ever so slightly across her temple, her cheek, the side of her throat. Then he began to nuzzle her neck with a feathering motion that drew a sigh from her, a current of pleasure sent down her spine.

"Good morning, beautiful," he breathed, running his large hands down her thigh.

The cold metal of Tony's bionic arm made her shiver, but she didn't flinch. She was so used to it now; amazed by how gentle the touch of his hand was, almost as if it was still made of flesh. One day, Tony would have figured out a way to use nano tech to create an arm that didn't even feel like metal anymore, let alone look like it. She was certain of that. He was already working on it, in fact. But Pepper had told him she loved him just the way he was. He was alive, that was all that mattered.

"Hey," she whispered, her fingers sliding over the cool metal and over the line where the titanium ended and he began.

She heard his breath catch in his throat, and she smiled, turning around to face him. Pepper kept her eyes closed as drops of water poured through her mane, just feeling his fingers skimming across her flesh. He brushed back her hair with a touch as soft as snowflakes and cupped her cheeks with both hands. She slowly opened her eyes and cast her gaze upward. Tony's smile was so full of tenderness that it was like being kissed; a smile so beguiling, it tripped her heartbeat to a breathless pace.

"Ready for your big day?"

"This day is a day like every other workday, honey," she answered, smiling.

"But you'll finally introduce our daughter to your world. That must be exciting for you." Tony wrapped his arms around her, pulling her against him, and she buried her face against his neck. "I'm so proud of you. For all you do at SI and for charity... and for me. And I know Morgan's too."

"You're my favorite charity case," she mumbled against his skin, making him giggle.

"She'll love it, Pep," he said, stroking her back. "Spending the day with her mama instead of staying home with me."

"I think she's more excited to wear one of her daddy's suits when she's old enough than to see her mommy boss around her employees."

Tony laughed softly and tilted her head so he could look at her. "Then why is she already downstairs, waiting for you?"

"She is?"

"Yup! All dolled up in that cute little business outfit you got her."

"But we didn't even have breakfast yet," she said surprised.

"I think she doesn't care." Tony chuckled and then gave her a light smack on the butt. "You better hurry. We Starks are very impatient."

"I know," Pepper replied, grinning, as she wiggled free of his arms. "I'm done here anyway."

"You should never be allowed to take morning showers without me," he said with a playful pout.

Pressing her breasts against Tony's chest, Pepper crushed her mouth over his, leaving him gasping for air. "How about I'll give you a rain check?"

"I'll swing by your office during lunch break," he muttered.

She laughed. "While our daughter's there? I don't think so." She stepped out of the shower, brushing her hand across his chest. "Tonight, Tony." She smirked. "I'll be all yours tonight."

"And what am I supposed to do about this—" he pointed at his erect penis, "now?"

"You got two hands, right? I'm sure you'll figure it out."

* * *

After gathering her stuff, Pepper went through it one last time to see if she was missing anything, then she turned to her daughter and smiled. "You got your lunchbox?"

Morgan nodded.

"Avengers Hero Inventor Kit? Because board meetings can get kind of boring."

"Check," she said with a grin, and added hopefully, "Beet sandwiches?"

"No, honey, I made avocado sandwiches. We had beets yesterday, remember?"

"I don't want avocado."

Morgan loved avocado. It was one of her favorites. But those beet sandwiches her mother had made her the day before had been so delicious...

"Beet sandwich! Beet sandwich! Beet sandwich!" she chanted, her Iron Man plush backpack bouncing up and down as she jumped.

"Spoken like a true Stark," Tony said proudly, coming down the stairs, and patted Morgan's head. "And a true daughter of mine." He looked at his wife with a big grin on his face.

"You say that like it's a good thing," Pepper joked and turned to Morgan. "Allons-y, ma petite sirène, we don't wanna be late."

"Tardiness is not acceptable in the Potts family," Tony said amused.

"You're right, it isn't," she told him, grinning.

She kissed her husband goodbye, grabbed her things from the kitchen counter and took her daughter's hand, leading her toward the car. She would never get used to how small and warm and totally vulnerable Morgan's hand felt. That girl was her whole world, so grown up but still so fragile. It scared her a little to know that someday she would have to let her walk this earth alone; to not be able to be there for her anymore, every step of the way, to protect her.

"Can I have beet sandwiches tomorrow?"

Pepper chuckled. "Sweetie, you can have beet sandwiches every single day, if you want to, we just don't have time anymore to make them _today_."

Morgan smiled happily as she pressed the back of her mother's hand softly against her mouth.

"What was that for?" Pepper asked, surprised at her child's tender caress.

The young girl looked up, her smile making her eyes shine. "Thank you."

"You wanted to thank me?"

She nodded.

"For giving you what you want?" Pepper grinned.

Morgan giggled. "Thank you for taking me to work and making sandwiches and being my mommy."

"All those things?"

Morgan hopped in the car once her mother had opened the door for her, and Pepper secured her in the car seat, dropping a kiss to her forehead.

"That's so sweet, honey, but you really don't have to thank me, especially not for being your mommy," she said, smiling. "Because being your mommy is my favorite thing in the world."

"I want to be a mommy, too."

Pepper laughed. "Please don't let your father hear that," she mumbled, closing the door and getting into the driver's seat. "He's already having a hard time thinking about you dating."

The answering giggle was lilting for a girl Morgan's size. She had an infectious giggle. Pepper knew all mothers said that, but hers really was. When her daughter cried, though, it was a fingernail down the blackboard of Pepper's soul. She could hardly bear seeing her cry.

* * *

Pepper parked her Audi in her reserved parking spot for executives at the front of the building and helped Morgan out of the car.

"Now, remember what we talked about. Stay close to me and don't touch anything you're not supposed to," she reminded her daughter.

"Because of the scary machines?"

"Yes, I don't want you to get hurt."

The security guard took casual note of them when they entered the building, and Morgan instantly gripped her mother's hand so tightly it almost stopped the blood flow. Pepper looked down and saw Morgan clinging to her leg. She could read her daughter's body language easily—the way she tensed up when she was afraid.

"It's okay, honey," she said, "That's just Tommy, our security guard." She looked at him, and he smiled at her as though he was trying to apologize for scaring the little girl. "I know he looks like a dangerous man, but he's a really sweet guy, aren't you, Tommy?"

Tommy crouched down in front of Pepper's daughter. "And you must be Morgan. It's so nice to meet you." Giving her a gentle smile, he ran a hand over Morgan's arm. "I'm sorry I scared you. I just need to look scary, so no one comes in here to hurt your mommy. You know, like, a bad guy."

Morgan peeked out from behind her mother's legs. "You're protecting Mommy?"

"Yes," he answered. "It's my job to make sure your mother always comes home to you after work."

"Daddy protects Mommy, too," she said, finally stepping forward.

"Your mommy must be a very important person then," Tommy noted, grinning.

Morgan nodded her head and looked up at Pepper, who was smiling at her. Then she stared back at the man in front of her and said, "Thank you for your service."

He chuckled. "You're welcome, kiddo. Now you have a good day." Tommy stood up. "And lots of fun."

She giggled and started tugging at her mother's hand, urging her to move. "Let's go, Mommy!"

They crossed the lobby and stopped at the front desk so Pepper could tell her, "This right here is Ian."

"Good morning, Mrs. Stark," the secretary welcomed her, and a smile touched the corner of his lips.

He was a bubbly young guy in his late twenties, who, according to Tony, had a major crush on her—Pepper never doubted this could be true. It was obvious that Ian was infatuated with her, and she had to admit, she liked it. It was nice coming into work every day and seeing that huge smile on the boy's face. And she liked detecting a proprietorial air about Tony whenever her husband accompanied her to business events where Ian was present, the words 'my wife' being mentioned countless times.

"Good Morning," Pepper returned his smile before shifting her gaze to Morgan. "Ian makes sure that everyone who enters this building gets all the info he or she needs. Say, someone wants to know on which floor my office is, then Ian is the guy who tells that person where to find me. He also receives information about any of our customers and passes this on to the correct department within the company."

The child waved at Ian with a smile, shouting, "Hi," and he waved back at her, doing the same.

"Will you stay with us all day?" he asked, and she nodded her head.

Pepper smiled. "I'm off early today, because we have a family thing later, so I thought this might be the best day to take her with me."

"That's nice," Ian said, smiling, and looked at the little girl. "What are you doing with your mom and dad this afternoon, Morgan? Anything exciting?"

"Yes," she answered, "We're going to the beach."

"That sounds like it will be a lot of fun. Here, take this!" Ian stuck a hand into his pocket and pulled out a lime green sucker. Morgan's eyes widened with surprise.

"Thank you," she squealed, taking the lollipop from him.

"I forgot to tell you, Ian is also the one who always keeps some candy in his pockets to cheer people up," Pepper said, laughing. "Now, come on."

They entered the elevator and Pepper let Morgan push the button. She loved to see the proud look on her daughter's face whenever she got to do something she considered to be a sign that she was finally grown-up.

"Mommy?"

"Yes, bébé?"

"Why don't you fly up to the floor with your suit?"

Pepper bit down on her bottom lip, trying hard not to laugh. "You mean with my Rescue suit?"

"I know you can fly with it and the elevator takes so long... Why do you not use the suit?"

"This is a great question, but honey, I—"

"Do you not like the suit Daddy made for you?"

"No, sweetie, I love it," she answered, smiling. "It was a beautiful gift, but, you know, we only use our suits when we are fighting." She paused. She really didn't like the thought of ever having to fight another battle where a suit would be needed. "And sometimes we use it when we're helping with construction work or something like that. I don't use it to get around, because I feel way more comfortable using my own two legs. I love walking and running, and I love driving my car and flying with a plane. I can do without a suit."

"Can _I_ have a suit?"

"Maybe some day, you will," she replied, hoping Morgan would not make a scene. She knew how much her daughter wanted to have her own suit, but she still hadn't warmed up to the idea of her baby girl following in her husband's footsteps. It was too soon.

Morgan smiled. "Really?"

"Yeah, maybe," Pepper said, and quickly changed the subject. "So, how do you like it here so far? Are you still excited about today?"

"I think Ian really likes you... Like Daddy."

"You think Ian likes me as much as Daddy does?" Pepper grinned. "What makes you think that?"

Morgan's face instantly lit up with a huge smile, and it took Pepper a second to realize that her daughter was mocking the front desk secretary, copying his smile as best as she could. She laughed out loud, shaking her head at the child who was so undeniably taking after Tony.

"Does it bother you if someone smiles or looks at me the way your daddy does?" Smiling, she studied the fascinating brown eyes, staring up at her.

"No," Morgan answered. "It's okay. You are so pretty! I think he is not the only man who is in love with you."

She quickly covered her mouth with her hand to stifle a giggle, and Pepper ruffled her hair, laughing.

"You're just like your Daddy. He makes fun of Ian, too."

* * *

**_A/N: _**_Look, I don't know a thing about Tony's nano tech and could be horribly wrong as to how that shit works, but trying to create a prosthetic arm that looks like it was made of flesh and feels that way too is what he's keeping himself busy with besides farming and being the perfect househusband and dad. I'm sorry I do make the rules. _

**_To be continued._**


	3. Takin' Care Of Business, Part II

**_A/N: _**_Thank you so much for the reviews guys. They make my day! :')_

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The elevator doors slowly opened on the floor where her office was located, and the face of Pepper's assistant greeted them as soon as they entered the reception area.

"Good morning, Jenna," Pepper said, smiling, as she stepped into the hallway. "You look a bit distressed. What's up?"

"Oh God, I don't even know where to begin."

"Well, then think about it and get back to me when you do," Pepper replied with a smirk.

Morgan giggled softly at Jenna's stunned face. She loved to see that everyone she had met so far seemed to stand in awe of her mother. And she admired her just like everyone else did, wished she were old enough already to have what she had. She couldn't wait to carry on her mother's work.

"Morgs? Please meet Jenna, my personal assistant." Pepper looked down at Morgan and smiled. "She does what I used to do for your father."

"She tells you what you have to do?"

"No, honey, that's..." Pepper laughed. "Well, you're not exactly wrong, but it's a little different. Unlike your father who didn't know the first thing about managing personal and business life, _I_ already know what I have to do. It's just that Jenna's helping me—"

"I'm here to relieve your mom from the stress," Jenna told the kid. "Because, you know, even though your mama knows what she has to do, it can be a bit stressful to manage everything. So, I look out for her. I bring her coffee or food, and I schedule meetings for her. I make sure the private jet's ready when she needs to travel. I reserve hotel rooms and rental cars. I remember birthdays for her, like the birthdays of people she works with, so she doesn't get into trouble. I answer some of her phone calls, write emails, and I take notes when she tells me something... or even when she doesn't tell me _anything_. I do all that stuff that your mother is too busy for." Jenna smiled. "Though she could do my job as well if she wanted to, because your mom is a freaking powerhouse."

Jenna noticed the sense of pride passing over the steady curiosity of Morgan's eyes fastened on her face. She looked at Pepper, smiling at the woman she considered more of a friend than her boss, and stared back at the little girl, who was beaming with pride now.

"Mommy can do everything," Morgan said proudly, a soft giggle escaping her mouth.

"I don't know about that, sweetie, but I'm trying to do everything the best I can," Pepper responded, chuckling. "So, what is it you so desperately needed to tell me, Jenna?"

Jenna frowned. "Oh, right... One sec." She quickly checked her notes, then looked back at Pepper. "I need you to call Bronx Arts and Science asap, 'cause the Smart Boards we were supposed to give them _yesterday_ had a malfunction."

"All of them?"

"We had 500 of them delivered, but something's wrong. Maybe it's the hardware, I don't know. I sent the tech unit over to check it out, but you really need to talk to them. They were counting on us, and you know they have this big ass event on Friday..." She cast a quick glance at Morgan. "Did I just say...? I'm sorry. Bad word, Mo." Morgan giggled. "It looks like they can't do _anything_ until we've figured this out."

"We're running their entire digital classroom response systems. If those Smart Boards aren't working, there might be something wrong with the whole set-up." Pepper sighed. "I'm gonna call the school administrator right away. Let me know if our guys can solve this or I'll have to call Tony." She looked at Morgan. "This is how Mommy loves to start her day."

"Uh, Pep? There's more," Jenna said meekly. Her expression looked slightly worried as if she knew the other thing would upset Pepper even more.

"What?"

"The speech you ought to give at the International Conference on Reducing Violence Against Women is scheduled for another day."

"But not —"

"Yes, I'm afraid so."

"But it's my wedding anniversary. I can't... I'm... We booked... I _can't_!"

She was appointed an UN Women Goodwill Ambassador only about a year ago, and she loved being a special envoy. Her efforts were geared towards raising awareness on the infringement of women's human rights around the world, with a particular focus on putting a spotlight on violence against women. Tony, on the other hand, helped to focus attention on environmental issues with the launch of an organization committed to using advanced technologies for the good of the environment.

"Well, I think your man would love nothing more than to boast about his wife in a room full of politicians and A-listers, _especially_ on the anniversary of his wedding, but I understand why this would be rather inconvenient."

"Is there any way I can reschedule?"

"I told the executive director of UN Women she'll hear back from you to talk things over, but I don't know, Pep. It didn't sound like you can. I'm sorry."

Heaving a sigh, Pepper closed her eyes for a moment and pinched the bridge of her nose with thumb and forefinger to stave off her headache. It was a habit she'd affected. It really did nothing for her headache, but she found herself doing it more and more at work lately. When she looked at her daughter, she noticed that Morgan still seemed surprisingly interested in all the boring work stuff they talked about. Pepper smiled, and the little girl smiled back, her small hand slipping into her mother's.

"Relax, Mommy," she said. "Everything will be okay. You just need to breathe."

Pepper's smile instantly grew bigger, her eyes glazing in a look of ineffable love and admiration for the kind and gentle human being that was her daughter. Morgan's sensitivity to other people's feelings, to the subtlest nuances of tone, was like her very own superpower, her high level of empathy something Tony and Pepper were incredibly proud of.

She squeezed her daughter's hand affectionately, rolling her thumb over her knuckles, and said, "Thank you, my baby." Morgan wrapped herself around her mother's legs, and Pepper bent to pick her up. "God, you're getting heavy," she remarked, chuckling, and the girl giggled. While she twined her arms and legs around Pepper like a monkey, Pepper buried her face in her daughter's mass of wavy hair. "I'm really happy you're here with me today," she whispered.

"Uh... Okay... I guess I will... I'll see you girls later," Jenna stammered, feeling like her presence was disturbing the intimate moment between a mother and her child. Pepper didn't even look at her when she said thank you, but Jenna could hear the smile through her voice.

"Are you ready to meet Allie?"

"Who's Allie?" Morgan asked, pulling away to look at her mother.

"She's my receptionist, and one of my favorite people," Pepper answered, as she walked over to her friend, carrying her daughter, her portfolio business case held in one hand. "She takes my calls and welcomes anyone who enters this floor, and she has been _dying_ to meet you."

As soon as she spotted them, Allie threw her head back and flung her arms up in the air, shouting, "Listen up! Morgan Stark is in da house!"

Morgan laughed. "Hi," she said, a small, almost coy smile crossing her lips.

"I've heard so many stories about you, girl, it's really nice to finally meet you in person." Allie smiled. "Are you here to learn about your mother's business?"

"I met Tommy and Ian and Jenna, and now Mommy is showing me her office," she answered. "And I saw the big letters with our name outside."

"That's right. It stays Stark," Allie said, chuckling. "Did you also see your mom's pictures in the lobby?"

Morgan nodded, grinning proudly.

"She doesn't like to show off with how many famous people she met, and how many awards she's received, but your daddy likes to show _her_ off," Allie quipped. "And I think it's great, because your mom totally deserves—"

"I just don't like to be the focus of attention when everything we do here is a big team effort," Pepper interjected, a smirk on her face. "And that's what I keep telling my dear husband every time he hangs up another one of these pictures, but I tell him _that_, and he just shouts 'Team Pepper' at me, so I let this man do whatever he wants to do. I kinda always have." She laughed.

"Team Pepper," Morgan mumbled, giggling. "My team!"

"We're all on that team, honey. Believe me," Allie said, laughing. "And most people who call me here also want to join Team Pepper."

"What do you say?" Morgan asked curiously.

"Well, whenever the phone rings I answer it and say, 'Stark Industries, Pepper Potts' office, this is Allie. What can I do for you?' And when I know what the person wants, I put the call through to your mother's office so they can speak to the boss."

"That's it?"

"Yep, that's basically my job."

"Wow, Mommy, I could do that!" she exclaimed.

"I bet you could," Pepper said with a chuckle.

"Only a few people call your mom's office directly, like—"

"Daddy?"

"Yes, although he usually calls her on her cell phone."

"Taylor Swift?"

"I'm sure Taylor has your mom's number. Beyoncé, too," Allie answered, looking at Pepper, both of them grinning.

Pepper put Morgan down, pulling the backpack off her shoulder, and said, "Mommy has to make a very important call right now. Can you stay with Allie for just a few minutes, sweetheart?"

"You can help me shred some papers."

"I'm not allowed to touch the scary machines," Morgan replied.

"You are if someone's watching you," Pepper told her, stroking her head. "I take your stuff with me. I won't be long, I promise." She disappeared into her office, locking the door behind her.

Allie handed Morgan a few sheets of paper, and since she was too small to reach the shredder, she lifted her up on top of the filing cabinet. She helped her with the shredder, and they laughed, giggled, talked and played the whole time until the door opened and Pepper poked her head out.

"This is fun, Mommy!" Morgan smiled, and Pepper smiled back at her.

"Do you want to see my office now?" she asked, and her daughter squealed with excitement, as she jumped from the cabinet and landed solidly on her feet.

"Bye, Allie," Morgan said, as she pushed past Pepper. The moment she walked through the door, she gasped, her gaze darting up to make eye contact with her mother before taking in minor details all over the room.

The office was spacious, with a big modern glass desk that supported a telephone-intercom system and a large flat-screened monitor, a low coffee table set between two comfortable three seater settees for visitors, and four grey colored filing cabinets which sat against the door wall. It also included built-in bookshelves, a fully stocked bar with refrigerator and a wall-mounted flat-screen TV. The window walls of Pepper's office were glazed from floor to ceiling to maximize daylight, offering a spectacular view over the City skyline.

"Do you like it?" Pepper had to grin at her daughter's obvious surprise.

"It is so big!" Morgan's eyes widened as she held out her arms to indicate the size of the room, making her mother laugh. Rushing forward, she cupped her hands over one of the large windows and tapped her forehead against the pane. "The people look like ants," she noticed, giggling.

Pepper walked over to her and laid her hand on Morgan's back, rubbing it gently. "Yeah, the world seems really small from up here," she mumbled.

"Mommy, I have a question," Morgan said, looking up.

"You know you can ask me anything you want."

"When Allie answers the phone she says your name is Potts, but Ian said your name is Stark, and I heard Daddy call you Mrs. Stark, too."

"It's confusing to you, isn't it?"

She nodded.

Crouching down to get to her level and be able to look into her eyes, Pepper tried to explain to her, "When I married your father I took his name, because sharing it with him means so much to me. He wanted to take mine, but I care about him so deeply and about the history we have together that I couldn't imagine _not_ becoming Mrs. Stark. I love to be his missus." Her face lit up with a smile, thinking about the very first time she signed a document with that name—their marriage certificate. "But here at work, I like to be Pepper Potts."

"You don't like it when people call you Mrs. Stark?"

"No, baby," she said, chuckling. "Being called Mrs. Stark still excites me in exactly the same way as when your daddy first called me that, but I have spent more than a decade building up a professional identity and reputation and I didn't want to cast that off. So, I'm doing business under my maiden name, Pepper Potts. It's like a brand. You know, like Walt Disney or Burger King. I have always used that name and people are very familiar with it. I didn't want to change it. Does that make sense to you at all?"

She frowned. "Can I be Morgan Potts today?"

Pepper laughed softly and stroked her thumb across her daughter's cheekbone slowly and gently. "What do Daddy and I always tell you?"

"I can be anyone I want to be."

"Exactly," Pepper said, smiling, before pecking her on the lips. "You have always been a Potts, Morgan Hope Stark, and you always will be."

She gave her mother a brilliant smile and leaned over to hug her. "I love you, Mommy," she whispered, her small arms wrapped tightly around Pepper's neck.

"I love you too, darling," she whispered back, sighing contentedly as she snuggled her daughter close to her chest.

* * *

**_To be continued._**


	4. Takin' Care Of Business, Part III

**_A/N: _**_This is the last part. Thanks for reading. Until next time!  
_

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"Hey, have you looked at the paintings on the wall yet?"

Morgan pulled back and shook her head.

"Then maybe you should."

"Why?"

"Just look," Pepper said, chuckling.

She went to look at the pictures her mother had on the wall in her office, didn't pay much attention to the first few pieces of artwork that caught her eye. But then she stopped, staring at a canvas hanging near the door.

"You know what this is?" Pepper came to stand next to her, her finger pointing at the name in the bottom right corner of the drawing. "Look what it says."

"My name." Morgan gazed at her mother, a little confused.

"It's a finger painting you did when you were just a baby." She led Morgan to another side of the office. "And this is a crayon picture of a fish living in the ocean. You drew that when you were one year old." Smiling, Pepper stroked her daughter's head, and then called her attention to another picture. The child's scribbled drawing showed a variety of flowers in a garden and a lake in the background. "You and Daddy made this together."

"The drawings are mine?"

"Yes, honey," Pepper answered. "I framed all of them and hung them on this wall. And they always put a smile on my face when I look at them, especially when I'm having a bad day."

"This is Gerald!" Morgan squeaked, as she spotted a 3D artwork.

Pepper laughed. "I wanted to do a lamb with you, but you insisted we make an alpaca, so I cut a basic pattern for an alpaca's body out of construction paper and you covered one side of the form with paste and then we put on the cotton balls." She scooped her daughter up in her arms. "Feel it. It's so soft."

Morgan patted the cotton, smiling from ear to ear as she looked at her mother. "Can we do this again?"

"Anytime, sweetie. You know how much I love making art with you." Pepper put her down. "Look around the office, see what else you like. If you need anything from your backpack, it's on the sofa."

Before sitting down at her desk, Pepper walked over to the bar and poured herself a glass of water. Walking back to her desk, she sat down and took a sip, and then began to assemble the papers into some kind of order whilst starting up her computer. She reviewed her emails, finding over twenty messages marked urgent—some people were far too liberal in their use of that little red exclamation point. She found but two actual emergencies. The other emails were just everyday, run-of-the-mill staff and customer panic attacks.

"Mommy, can I try this lipstick?"

"What lipstick, honey?" she asked, not looking up.

"I found it in a drawer and it's so pretty." She held out her hand to show it to her.

"Of course you can—" As Pepper looked up from her computer, she gasped at the sight of what she was seeing, and her eyes grew wide with shock. "No!"

"Why not?"

"This is... Oh my God!"

She took a deep breath, watching her daughter inspect the lipstick, captivated by its bright red color. Morgan touched the soft silicone flex tip that had so often given Pepper the perfect stimulation right where it counted. She noticed little lines crinkling Morgan's forehead, as the child tried to figure out why rubbing a small amount of lipstick on her finger didn't stain it like it usually did. Pepper carefully took it from her and put the cap back on.

"This was a gift from your daddy," she began to explain, "I take it with me whenever I have to go away for a while because of work. And when I miss Daddy too much, I put that lipstick on and I think of him. It makes me feel good."

Pepper bit her lip and traced the outline with her tongue. She felt like her forehead was reading _No lie detected_ in illuminated letters. That mini vibrator had become a welcome addition to her cosmetics bag on long business trips, the sound of the whisper-quiet motor always drowned out by her loud moans. It had taken her a while to really appreciate her husband's small gift. Now she couldn't believe she had rolled her eyes at him at first. The disguised sex toy was a joke present, nothing more, but it was compact and portable—just what she needed when she travelled light—and it always made missing Tony a little easier.

"Do you miss me too when you're away?" Morgan asked, looking up, her eyes wide-awake but vulnerable, like a puppy's eyes.

Pepper let the lipstick disappear into the pocket of her coat that was draped over the back of the desk chair, then turned to her daughter and held out her arms, smiling. "Viens voir maman, mon bébé."

The child climbed up into her mother's lap, and Pepper enveloped her in a hug and rested her chin on Morgan's head. They sat that way for a moment, huddled together in silence, enjoying each other's comfort. Pepper closed her eyes and breathed in the perfume of coconut milk shampoo in her daughter's hair. She kissed her head, then put her face to the side of Morgan's face and brushed her lips across the soft skin of her cheek.

"I always miss you when you're not with me," she spoke, quietly, as to not ruin the moment. "When I'm here, in my office, I catch myself staring at the clock all the time, because I just can't wait to get home to you and Daddy."

Morgan turned her head to look at her. "Really?"

Pepper nodded, smiling. "You know, the very first time I had to go away on a business trip and couldn't be with you for a few days, I actually cried. You sat directly in front of the video camera when we skyped, on Daddy's lap, so I could see your beautiful face, and I started crying, because I missed you so much. I just wanted to hold you in my arms." She squeezed her gently, kissing her temple. "Like this."

Morgan giggled softly.

"You were so small."

"I'm a big girl now."

"You are," Pepper said, grinning. "But that doesn't change the fact that Mommy still loves to cuddle you." She glanced down as Morgan's tiny fingers touched her cheek and saw the sparkling brown eyes looking back at her. "I really love my work, and I love that I get to travel to so many beautiful places, trying to make a difference in the world, but getting to come home to you and Daddy is the best part of my job."

Without saying a word, Morgan gave her mother a long, warm kiss on the cheek, and Pepper felt consumed with a joy that was beyond human understanding. She would give her life for her daughter's happiness—Tony had done it when he had snapped his fingers to wipe out Thanos and his army, to make sure that their child had a future. He had survived, barely, and Pepper had spent day after day at his bedside fearing the worst. It had brought them closer together as a family, closer than ever. Looking into the eye of death had made them appreciate what they had so much more.

Pepper had always planned things ahead to be prepared rather than lived in the moment. She hadn't completely let go of the spontaneity of her girlhood, but she had learned to silence her spontaneous feelings so that she could behave in ways expected of her or ways that were appropriate. She had considered everything carefully and rationally to be successful in whatever endeavor she laid hands on, her mind always set on the goal. But ever since Tony had almost been taken away from her, she was trying to live more in the here and now, the present moment of life, and enjoy life as it came—much to Tony's liking.

Pepper's gaze fell on the framed wedding picture on her desk. The photo showed her and Tony, standing together closely embraced, her hands cupped around his face, his arms holding her waist, as they kissed. She was wearing a lace dress featuring feminine cap sleeves, and illusion neckline and an open-back, paired with a long tulle veil. He wore a black tuxedo with a white satin shirt, a lilac necktie, and black patent shoes. Both glowed with health and vitality, smiling blissfully into the kiss. But on a portrait meant for two there was an unexpected intruder, an unmistakable and prominent baby bump appearing on the bride. Pepper sighed contentedly. Some days it all still seemed like a dream.

"You look so beautiful, Mommy." Morgan, who had followed her mother's gaze, reached over and stroked the picture frame. "I love your dress."

"Thanks, honey," Pepper answered, smiling. Then she put her finger on the photo, right where her bump was, and said, "There's you. You were really excited that day, just like me and Daddy."

"How do you know?"

"Because I could feel it," she explained. "I was four months pregnant and there was a flutter inside my tummy, like when someone taps his fingers on a tabletop, and it didn't stop. It felt like I had butterflies in my stomach."

Morgan grinned and let out a soft giggle. She couldn't fathom the concept of birth—that she once fit into her mother's body—and she loved to hear stories about the time when she was still a baby, or not even born yet.

"Did you like it?"

"I loved it," Pepper said with a big smile. "It was the very first time I felt you move, and when I told your daddy, he started crying. We both did, because we were so, so happy."

"Can you have another baby?"

Pepper chuckled. She hadn't forgotten about the night Morgan had asked her if she could have a brother, and it looked like her daughter was thinking about that a lot lately. She still hadn't told Tony, but she felt like she knew how he was going to react to it.

"Honey..."

Pepper thought long and hard about an answer, tried to focus more on _if_ she wanted one rather than if it was possible, considering her age—and as she did that, the answer became obvious. Yes. A hundred times yes. She would have all of Tony's babies.

"I love your daddy so much, and you're the living proof that we make beautiful babies—" she gently pinched Morgan's cheek, "—of course I can imagine having another baby with him. But, you know, your father and I are still coming to terms with everything that's happened, and I don't think now's the right time to—" She paused, noticing her daughter's intense stare. "Give Mommy some time, okay? The last few months have been really hard for me, and I'm just glad Daddy's still alive and—" She paused again, as she had to swallow the lump that had suddenly risen in her throat, and drew in a deep breath.

Feeling her mother's inhibition to continue, Morgan flung her arms around her and hugged her, wanting to comfort her. "I'm sorry," she whispered. She didn't mean to make her sad. She just loved the idea of seeing her pregnant, of becoming a big sister.

Pepper kissed her head and snuggled her, smiling through the tears she felt burning her eyes. "You have nothing to be sorry for, baby. Sometimes Mommy gets overwhelmed thinking what if we had lost Daddy…"

"And you get sad?"

"Yes," she answered, "I have nightmares too, but then Daddy takes me into his arms and I'm okay again. I'm still healing, you know? It takes time."

Morgan nodded. "I'll help you heal," she said softly, squeezing her.

"You already do." Pepper sighed. "You're helping me a lot."

She glanced at the right-hand corner of her computer screen where a notification had popped up that the board meeting was about to start. They were going to talk about what could be the next big step for Stark Industries as the world was rebuilding itself after Tony's snap, and she knew it would probably take a lot longer than expected. But Morgan had insisted on being present, no matter how long it took and how boring it was, and Pepper was proud that her daughter took such a great interest in the company's day-to-day business.

"Can you please grab your toys, Morgs? It's time for our meeting."

Morgan slid from her mother's lap and went to get the things she had in her backpack that would help keeping her entertained while the grown-ups talked. Then she followed Pepper to the conference room. Pepper pushed open the door and held it for her, and Morgan walked in, letting out an amazed gasped at the size of the room, some thirty by fifty feet.

The west side was lined with large windows, similar to Pepper's office. Opposite the windows was a long table, stacked high with a lavish array of catered drinks, pastries and fruit. The dominant piece of furniture in the room was a large rectangular glass conference table with a chrome leg frame. Each section was fitted with a flip in-desk power module providing power, data, and multimedia connections. The table itself was set up classroom-style. There was a folder, a notepad, pens, and pencils at each seat.

At the south end of the room was a painting that covered the entire wall: the mural showed the company's logo at the top while items from the company's past were painted below, capturing the essence of a dynamic era of technology. Every item symbolized a different technological development in the history of Stark Industries. The painting was like a timeline of everything ever invented under the name Stark, from the arc reactor to the time GPS device.

"Look, Mommy, there's Daddy," Morgan squealed, filled with great pride to see her father's face painted on the wall, the face of the company. "There's Daddy!"

Pepper laughed softly, as she ran a hand over Morgan's head, her fingers combing her hair. Morgan threw herself down on a beanbag chair slouched in one corner of the conference room and arranged her things on her floor. When her mother offered her an iced orange juice, she took it and smiled, opening the small bottle and taking a sip. Soon the room filled with people and the meeting started, and Morgan tried to focus on every word that was said.

Three hours later, Pepper found her daughter curled up on the beanbag chair, snoring lightly. She bowed and nudged Morgan's arm gently, and the child opened her eyes and blinked.

"There you are," Pepper said, chuckling, "Were you asleep the whole time?"

Morgan shook her head. "I heard you talk about Malibu."

"So you've only been asleep for an hour? Wow, that's amazing!" Pepper grinned. "You listened to everything and didn't play with your toys?"

"I made notes."

"You did what?" Pepper asked confused, the surprise in her voice evident. Only then did she notice the small notebook in her daughter's hands where she had scribbled away.

Morgan had been keen on learning how to write and read from very early on, but contrary to what people might think she was capable of, being Tony Stark's child, she had difficulties with it. Pepper had tried to encourage her not to give up, to tell her she would get there eventually, but, as a mother, it had been extremely hard for her to watch her little girl struggle and become frustrated with herself. To see now that she had actually managed to write down a few words that were easily readable touched Pepper so deeply it brought tears to her eyes.

"You wrote... like... Words?"

"Look!"

Pepper crouched down and looked at the letters, then back at her daughter. A grin crept into her stunned expression and she clapped her hands together in glee.

"You did it, baby! You did it." Leaning forward, she smothered her daughter's face with kisses. "You did it, you did it, you did it."

Morgan started giggling uncontrollably.

"You're so amazing! I knew you could do it," Pepper squealed, as she pulled her into a hug, tears of joy trickling down her cheeks. "Aw, my heart! Mommy's so proud of you."

Morgan tossed her head back and laughed heartily, her arms wrapped around her mother's neck.

"We have to tell Daddy," Pepper said, sniffing back tears, and pulled away. "He'll be so happy to hear it."

They left the conference room and entered the hallway, Pepper carrying Morgan's stuff. Morgan walked with her head held high, a sense of pride overwhelming her. She didn't care if she still didn't write and read as well as other children. Her mother was proud of her and that was all that mattered to her in this moment. Knowing the things she did made her parents happy was a great feeling. She couldn't stop grinning.

"What are _you_ smiling about?" Allie asked.

"I can write."

"You can write?" Allie smiled at the child whose big grin was quite infectious. "That's awesome! Won't be long now until you can help your mother with her paper work."

Morgan looked up Pepper, and Pepper smiled, telling her, "I could really use some help with that, little miss Potts."

The girl giggled at the mention of Pepper's maiden name, loving that her mother had actually listened to her before when she had asked her if she could be Morgan Potts today. And today was really exciting. She had so much to tell her father about. The memories she made at Stark Industries were truly unforgettable. If she could become a successful businesswoman like her mom one day, this is the place where she wanted to be. It was so full of love, and life, and exciting things. She understood now why the company was so important to her mother.

Lost in thought, Morgan flinched when the receptionist's phone rang. "Can I get it this time, Mommy? Please, please, please," she begged.

"Of course," Pepper replied, smiling. "Go ahead."

Picking up the phone, she said in a small voice, "Stark Industries, Pepper Potts' office, this is Morgan. What can I do for you?" The person on the phone said something and Morgan frowned, thinking. "I don't know if we can do that. She is very busy."

"Who is it, Morgan?"

Pepper grinned. She wasn't worried that her daughter could do anything wrong, say anything she wasn't supposed to say. Everyone kind of knew who she was; everyone could hear the voice belonged to a kid, so whomever Morgan was talking to had to know this wasn't a very serious phone call.

"When do you want to come here?" Morgan asked. "Hm." She crinkled her forehead. "You have to make an appointment with the boss." She paused briefly. "Like I said, she is very busy, Mr. Stark."

Pepper laughed softly. "Are you talking to your father?"

"Yes, I think two o'clock is okay," she said, nodding. Whatever Tony said next made her giggle.

"What is he saying?"

Morgan looked at her and grinned, not answering her but replying to her father instead, "Yes, the idea is great, but they need to be really pretty."

Again, her daughter emitted a soft giggle, and it drove Pepper almost insane to know they were talking about _her_, but not to know what they were talking _about_.

"Thank you, Mr. Stark. We like doing business with you. Goodbye," Morgan ended the phone call. She quickly glanced at Allie, who was making an amused face, then looked at her mother. "Mr. Stark arrives at two."

Laughing, Pepper shook her head. "Can you drop the act for a second, young lady, and tell me what you and your daddy were talking about? I know it was about me, but—"

"Yes, because you are the boss."

"Yeah, but why did he even call, and what do you mean, they need to be really pretty? _Who_ needs to be really pretty? Did I miss something?" She looked at Allie, and Allie shrugged her shoulders, still smirking.

"Daddy told me not to tell you."

"Of course he did," Pepper replied, amused. "So he'll be here at two?"

Morgan nodded.

"That gives me enough time to bribe you," she joked.

"With juice pops?"

"With Mommy's love," Pepper answered, grinning. "I'll squeeze you like a lemon until you tell me." She put the things she was carrying down on Allie's desk and pulled Morgan into a hug. The little girl laughed, struggling to get out of her mother's hold.

"You don't really like surprises, do you?" Allie guessed, laughing.

"My husband's surprises usually give me a heart attack," Pepper said, chuckling. "Although the last time he surprised me was when he awoke from a six-week coma, so that was a really beautiful surprise." She gave a genuine smile, one of happiness, and kissed Morgan's hair. "Alright, Madam Secretary, time for lunch. Then we got more work to do. You can help me answering my emails and when we're done with that I can show you one of the labs, which is a lot bigger than Daddy's garage and has even more toys for you to play with."

Morgan shouted with joy and ran into Pepper's office. Pepper followed her and closed the door. They ate, they replied to emails together, and they spent several hours in the workshop where Morgan was given a tour of the department. As much as she loved being in Daddy's garage, watching him work and inventing all these crazy things, being at Stark Industries made her feel like this was really the place where all the magic happened, not just in the lab but everywhere else, too. She loved the people, the atmosphere and the feeling that whatever was done here impacted the whole world.

Five minutes before the clock struck two, Tony came into the lobby with a large bouquet of roses. The flowers were so huge and full that he couldn't see where he was going. He cursed, running into a few things and bumping into other people, as he made his way to the front desk. He lowered his arm to look at Ian, then his lips parted so a wide, toothy grin could be seen.

"Hi there, pal. I'm here to see my _wife_." The emphasis he put on the last word was ridiculous, and he could see how hard Ian was trying not to roll his eyes at him. "And before you ask... No, it's not her birthday and it's not our wedding anniversary," —again, Tony made sure to emphasize the word that tied Pepper to him— "I just like to surprise her every once in a while to show her how much I love being her _husband_."

"You don't need my permission to go see the boss, Mr. Stark," Ian said, faking a smile.

"That's right, I don't." Tony replied, chuckling. "I can see my missus whenever I want."

"Then please do." Ian's voice was a mix between an invitation and a plea. He couldn't stand to look at Tony's smug face any longer, but he also didn't want to come off as rude. So he forced another smile and gave him a nod of the head. "Have a nice day, Mr. Stark."

"Oh, I will," Tony answered, flashing his teeth in another big grin. "You wanna know why?"

_No, I don't_, Ian said to himself.

"Because today's beach day, and I will just lie back and admire the _view_." There was a dramatic pause, the look on his face leaving no doubt as to what he meant by that. "My wife in a bikini is..." Tony blew a kiss toward the heavens with a 'mwah' sound. "Bellissima!" Laughing at Ian's expression, he strutted to the elevator. He would never get tired of teasing that boy.

When Tony entered the hallway to Pepper's office, people chuckled at the sight of him, holding a bouquet that made him appear tiny. He bumped into a few more people before making it to the door. Then he waltzed in like he owned the place—technically, he did—and Pepper's mouth fell open.

"Where would you like these flowers, Mrs. Stark?" He couldn't wait to put them down. They were really heavy.

"Oh my God! Are these for me?" She couldn't even see his face.

Tony barely made it to her desk when he put them down. "Yeah, who else would they be for, Pep? You don't think I'm having an affair with your receptionist, do you?" He collapsed in one of the settees, and Morgan came to him, lovingly nestling in the crook of his arm. "Are these pretty enough?" The little girl nodded, grinning.

"So that's what that phone call was about?"

"Mostly, yes. I just asked your little receptionist here if I could drop by a bit earlier than planned, because I had a surprise for you."

"And this is the surprise?"

"That's part of it, yeah."

"What do you mean _part_ of it?" Pepper frowned.

"Your daughter and I... I mean _our_ daughter and I had a little talk and we figured we should spend some more time at the beach in the summer, you know, since we've been living in the woods for so long I feel like we don't even know what a damn beach looks like anymore. So I've been doing some thinking and—"

"Daddy bought a house."

"He bought—" Pepper stared at her daughter, then at her husband. "You did what?"

"It's just a small house, Pepper."

She gave a big sigh and leaned forward, the scent of the flowers conjuring up memories of their wedding. "Define small," she mumbled.

"Six bedrooms, four bathrooms, a pool and a few other, really _small_ things," he said, stroking Morgan's arm as he spoke. "And a private beach... Or as I like to call it, a paparazzi-free picnic spot by the ocean."

Pepper raised her head and looked at him. "So you got me these flowers to win me over?"

"No, honey." Tony chuckled. "I got you these flowers because I love you." He smiled. "You're the world's greatest wife and an even better mom, and Maguna and I are really lucky to have you, so this is just a thank you." He paused. "I did think you'd be more excited about the house, though. Makes me a little sad that you ain't."

"Tony..." She sighed and ran a hand through her hair, then smiled at him. "I... I'm not angry with you, I just want us to talk about these things first before we make a decision."

"I almost died, Pep. I want us to have nice things and I want us to have them _now_, not some day in the future. And an art studio is a very nice thing to have, don't you think? Especially for someone like you whose sooo into that stuff."

Pepper opened her mouth to say something and closed it again, furrowing her brow, as his words slowly sunk in. Seeing her mother's expression, Morgan giggled, eyeing her father who was grinning from ear to ear.

"Mm-hm. You heard that right," he said with a chuckle. "The place comes with a studio that has breathtaking views of the ocean, so you can actually see us down at the beach while you're working. And if you'd rather feel a soft breeze from the ocean to get your creative juices flowing, that's totally cool, because there's a deck directly outside the studio."

He knew about her passion for the arts, visual arts in particular, and how much she had used art as a form of escapism to shield herself from the harsh reality of countless setbacks on the long road of his recovery. Tony didn't really understand how she could find strength in art, but he knew it made her happy and that was everything he needed to know.

But the part of their cabin that Pepper used to work and make her own pieces of art was small, nothing like having an entire room dedicated to her passion. And he wanted her so much to have it. After everything she had been through, he wanted her to have a place to get away from reality—work, life, whatever—whenever she wanted to, even if it meant that he had to do without her for a few days.

Getting up from the settee, he said, "You can still say no, and keep the flowers, but Morgan and I would very much like for you to see it."

"She knew?" Pepper stared at her daughter, Morgan's cheeky grin reminding her so much of Tony's.

He laughed. "She's way better at keeping secrets than I am."

"Why are you telling me this now? Why didn't you wait 'til later?"

Tony grinned as he came to stand behind her. He slid one arm around her waist and nuzzled the side of her throat, planting little kisses that made her insides melt and her knees go wobbly. One hand moved to the bouquet of flowers, pulling out a small metal frame that Pepper had completely failed to see in the sea of roses.

"I thought you might like to hang this on one of these walls. Let Morgan pick a spot, considering she's the one who made it."

"She—" Pepper's eyes darted to her child. "This is yours?"

Morgan jumped off the sofa and walked over to her parents. "Daddy took me to the house and—"

"This is the first piece ever created at your oceanfront studio. That is, _if_ you decide to say yes to my, um... proposal," Tony said, smirking.

As Pepper turned around the frame to look at it, she saw a sophisticated work of art. Morgan had hand picked seashells along the Hamptons beaches—imperfect shells that were typically overlooked, naturally shattered by the churning of the sea into shimmering fragments—and carefully cleaned them. Then she had assembled them into a flower-like work of art that was part collage, part mosaic, and part sculpture. It was one of the most beautiful pieces of art Pepper had ever laid eyes on.

"But it's not even my birthday," she whispered, feeling herself tear up. She locked eyes with her daughter. "Why did you do this for me?"

Morgan smiled. "I love you and I love to make you happy."

"This makes me really happy, my darling. _You_ make me so happy," Pepper said, reaching around Morgan's shoulder and pulling her against her side.

As she stood next to her, Morgan leaned against Pepper's chest, feeling the weight of her mother's chin on her head. "Can we go to the beach house now?"

Pepper's voice was a little shaky as she answered, "I'd go anywhere in the world with you."

Tony wrapped his arms around Pepper and Morgan's body, his lips touching his wife's hair, a soft kiss. "So would I," he whispered, sighing deeply.

The love he felt between the two women in his life, and in his heart, moved him to tears. He was always overcome by emotions seeing them together like this. They were the perfect mother-daughter duo, their bond the strongest and deepest he'd ever witnessed. But he didn't envy Pepper for the relationship she had with their daughter, because he knew his bond with Morgan was just as special. No one could ever tear apart their family—not even someone as powerful as Thanos was capable of doing that.


	5. I Found Peace In Your Arms

**_A/N: _**_This was a prompt, kinda, and it takes place a few weeks after the battle while Tony's still in a coma. Writing this was pretty emotional as it's super heavy on the heart, but there's hope and comfort and cuteness, so…_

* * *

A few weeks ago, a doctor had told her the burn Tony had suffered was so severe his arm had to come off, and she had thought that to be the worst news she's ever heard. But then just two days later, there was a phone call about how Tony had suddenly fallen into a coma, and Pepper almost broke down, falling into a coma herself right in front of the eyes of her daughter.

The doctor had told her it wasn't a coma like you see in the movies. Tony's brain was very active and he seemed to be going in and out of REM cycles. He was simply asleep, he said, and that in all likelihood, he would wake up very soon. But Pepper knew that a coma was a coma, even if it wasn't a _coma_ coma, even if he called it sleep. After all, sleep was _not_ not a coma. And now, six weeks later, that same doctor was telling her Tony's body was rejecting the treatment he had been on for some time.

"I don't understand sir... How can his body be rejecting the very thing he needs in order to get well? And why is this only happening _now_?"

"That's what we're trying to figure out, Mrs. Stark."

"Will... Is he...?" Pepper swallowed, tears welling in her eyes. She didn't blink, but she didn't look away from the man watching her, either. "Is my husband ever going to wake up?" She took the doctor's silence as a no. "Oh God, what am I supposed to tell our little girl?"

She swayed dangerously and reached a hand out instinctively to steady herself. The wall of the hospital's hallway was the only steady thing in her life at this minute, and she clung to it like she had clung to Tony on the battlefield when she'd thought she'd lost him. She hadn't then, because he had started breathing again, but Pepper felt like this was finally the moment where she had to say goodbye for good.

But how could she ever let go of the man she loved more than anyone ever in her life, the father of her daughter? Her soulmate?

A look of concern spread across the doctor's features, then he said, "We haven't given up on him yet, but I'm not going to lie to you, Mrs. Stark, there is little, if any, chance that he will come back, so you may wanna start thinking about—"

"No!" Pepper let out a repressed sob then pulled herself together again with all the dignity she could muster. With a forced infusion of pride she said, "I'm not gonna give up on him, and you won't either." She pressed her lids together, trapping the tears, and then she opened her eyes and looked at him with a plea on her lips.

"I will do everything in my power," he said with a soft nod. "You have my word."

She mouthed a thank you, waited until he had left before she leaned her back against the wall and breathed in and out, again and again. She felt like she was having a panic attack. It was almost impossible for her to calm her breath. Her body collapsed hard on the floor, so hard indeed that she hurt herself a little, but she didn't care. Burying her face in her arms, as she hugged her knees, Pepper started sobbing loudly—the moment was captured by a paparazzo and made the front page of the Daily Bugle the next morning.

"I can't believe someone would do this to you," Happy snorted angrily. "And this headline! _Tony Stark finally causes Pepper Potts to break down_... W–What do they mean, _finally_? You think they've just been waiting for this to happen all along? Like, all these years you and Tony—"

"Happy," she said his name with a faint smile. Pepper rolled her shoulders and tried to crack the tension out of her neck—what she wouldn't give to feel Tony's warm fingers massaging it instead. "I don't care what they write about me or Tony. If they want this to be their headline, fine. I just want them to leave our kid out of it."

"No, it's _not_ fine," Happy almost shouted. "We're gonna sue them."

Pepper sipped her coffee with a steady hand, but it wasn't hard to see that she was upset. There was wateriness in her blue eyes, and the sleeve of her tie-dyed sweater was wet from all the times she had wiped it across her face. She cried herself to sleep almost every night, but made sure to always stay strong for her daughter. Still, after six weeks of doing that she was truly exhausted. She didn't know how long she could keep this up, especially knowing there wasn't much hope left. She just couldn't take it anymore.

"I gotta get Morgan," she mumbled, as she slowly got up from the chair. "She needs to eat something before we leave for the hospital."

"Have you told her yet?"

Shaking her head, Pepper sighed. "I don't know how to tell her. I mean, how do you tell your child that her daddy might never..."

Fear wrapped itself around Pepper's mind, and before she could even finish that sentence, her vision went dark and she slumped forward. Happy caught her weight and lifted her in his arms so that she didn't collapse to the ground. He pulled her back upright, tight against his hard body, and felt the tension in Pepper's fingers as she gripped his shoulders.

"Easy, Pep. I got you."

Pepper breathed in and out deeply, holding on to him for several seconds until her head stopped spinning and she could stand on her own. Letting go, her voice quivered a little, as she said, "I want so much to believe that he'll be fine and I–I try to… think positive... you know, for her and for myself, but... What if I really lost him this time, Happy?"

Her suffering was excruciating to him. Happy could scarcely stand to see her eyes so red and full of tears. He didn't know what to say to comfort her, because he felt the same way. He tried not to let any negative thoughts consume him, whether he was awake or asleep, but the longer Tony was in a coma the harder it became. If he could do anything to ease Pepper's pain, he would. She had been through so much already, so many times when she thought she'd lost him. She didn't deserve this, any of it.

As he hugged her, and let her cry against his chest, he told her over and over again that it was going to be all right, until Happy almost started to believe it himself. "Tony vowed to annoy you for the rest of your life, I was there, remember? He's gonna live up to that promise, you'll see…"And even through her pain, Pepper managed to laugh softly at Happy's words.

Tears dried, she knelt at her daughter's bedside and took a moment to admire God's creation. As she kept staring into her face in wonder, a smile got hold of Pepper's lips. She smoothed Morgan's hair off her forehead and tenderly ran a hand over her cheek. Reverently, her eyes traced the black arch of her brows, the nose, her stubborn chin, and her quick to speak mouth. What a child life blessed her with. Even if her worst nightmare came true, at least she still had her baby girl.

"Time for breakfast, honey. Daddy's waiting," she whispered, as she softly kissed her cheek.

"Mommy?" Yawning, Morgan rubbed her eyes and looked at her.

"Good morning, my gorgeous girl," Pepper said, smiling. "How was your night? Did you sleep okay?"

"No nightmares," she answered, her tired face breaking into a little smile.

Relief rushed through Pepper like a cold drink on a hot day. "That's good, right?"

"Yes, but..." Morgan paused, looking at her mother as though she was waiting for something.

"What? What's wrong, Morgan?"

"Are you okay, Mommy?"

"Why would you ask me that?" Pepper wondered, stroking Morgan's hair.

"Because you cried," the little girl whispered, her voice as faint as the sound of waves in a seashell, sad and soft.

"You heard me cry?"

Morgan nodded.

"Last night?"

Again, she nodded.

"Was that the only time you...?" Pepper swallowed. "Did you hear Mommy cry a lot?" Somehow, referring to herself in the third person made her feel less like she failed, failed to be the mother that her daughter needed her to be.

"Sometimes," Morgan answered quietly, as though she had said something she wasn't supposed to say.

"Oh, honey... I'm sorry!"

Pepper's chest felt hollow, her heart dead and still. Her shoulders became almost too heavy to hold up. She fought back tears as she stared at her daughter. Those damn tears! She'd never cried so much in her life as in these few weeks. It was as if all her defenses had been trampled down.

"I'm really sorry you had to hear that." She crawled into bed with her daughter, slipping one arm around her as she rested her cheek on the top of Morgan's head. "It's just that..." She sighed. "I miss your daddy so much!" In the uttering of those six simple words, Pepper felt a stab of emotion that threatened to overwhelm her. She quickly shook it away. "His voice... his touch... you know, the way he holds me. And you know how he likes to lay his head on my lap when we watch TV? I miss that too."

"I miss Daddy's smile," Morgan said sadly, as she snuggled closer.

"Me, too, baby." Pepper's voice caught in her throat, but she forced herself to continue. "He's got such a beautiful smile." Thinking of it, Pepper couldn't help but smile herself. It was a sad smile, though.

"Maybe you have to give Daddy a really long kiss."

"What do you mean, honey?"

"Like Sleeping Beauty."

"Like Phillip awakened Aurora with a kiss?" Pepper felt Morgan nod, and she sighed deeply. "I wish that worked, sweetie... I wish I could just... kiss your daddy... I wish my love was enough to..." Feeling her eyes fill hotly with tears, she pressed her lids tightly together to keep them from spilling down her cheeks. She exhaled sharply and opened her eyes again, then lifted Morgan's chin with her forefinger until she met her gaze. "You know life isn't a fairytale, darling, no matter how much we want it to be."

"I know," she said quietly.

"And your daddy, he's... He..."

"Is Daddy dying?" Morgan's taut voice cracked with emotion.

"No," Pepper replied quickly, trying to sound as convincing and determined as she could. "They said, Daddy's having a hard time right now, getting better, and they don't know what to do. But if we believe that he's going to make it, it doesn't matter what the doctors say, right? As long as we're there for him, as long as we let him know that we haven't given up on him, he'll keep fighting. I know he will. We just have to be strong for him, okay?"

"Okay," Morgan said, nestling her head in the crook of her mother's arm.

Pepper pulled her close and sighed, sitting that way with her for a few minutes until her daughter's stomach made a grumbling sound, and she had to get up to stuff some food into her mouth. Breakfast was quick, and they arrived at the hospital not long after. They managed not to run into any paparazzi, but Pepper knew they were there—they always were, hiding in the corners of the hospital, some of them even disguised as staff.

Seeing Tony's body there, on the bed, hooked to all these machines, made Pepper feel sick to her stomach every single time she entered the room. She would never get used to that sight. Unlike her daughter, who seemed so unfazed by everything—the sounds of the ventilator, the tubes, and the way he looked dead already. Morgan ran up to her father, like she always did, and sat down right next to him on the bed. And then she immediately started talking to him about whatever was going inside her head. Pepper, however, was always quiet, smiling at her daughter's words, and sometimes laughing softly at them, but her heart was so heavy from missing Tony that it cried out for him, loudly and bitterly.

She didn't know if being alone with him was a blessing or a curse, because she didn't do much except talk to him, cry, say something again, and then cry some more. There, in this room, when the doors were closed, was the only place where she really felt like she could let go of all the pain, let it all out. Happy had picked Morgan up to get lunch, and she had talked to Tony's doctor again to hear if there had been any changes since the day before, but it seemed like things were only going to get worse. She knew she had to be strong, that's what she had told their child, but he was in a coma for almost two months now, and while she wouldn't let herself give up hope, her heart seemed to break a little more every day.

When Pepper sat down beside him, the first thing she did was to take his hand in both of hers and let out a quiet sob. Then she just sat there staring at him, with tears streaming down her face. "I'm sorry, Tony." Her voice broke, but she managed to shore it up again. "I feel like I'm failing you."

He was laying so still, the only movement the rise and fall of his chest, the same chest she had leaned against and rested her head upon countless times since she'd known him. She bent down to kiss his hand. Tony's familiar taste and scent overwhelmed her for a second, sending tears spilling from her eyes. She bit her lip, willing them to stop. She was so tired of being weak, of crying, of the pain, and the fear of losing him. She was so tired of it all. It was time that he came back to her. It was time for him to come back and tell her that everything would be okay, because she really needed to hear that right now.

"And I feel like I'm failing _her_," she said, her voice only a whisper. "I try to be a good mother, you know, to be strong for her, but I feel so alone without you, honey, I don't know what to do." Pepper's lips quivered. She was like a child who had exhausted itself with crying, and still trembled with an occasional sob. "I have nightmares about you, about Thanos, _all_ of it. I lie awake all night, or I cry myself to sleep. I didn't know Morgan could hear it. And now that I do, I feel even worse." She was silent for moment and just looked at him, trying to smile through her tears. "Just come back, okay?" With her other hand, she combed her fingers through his hair and sucked a deep breath in between her teeth. "I need you," she whispered as she lay her head down on his chest and closed her eyes.

Pepper smiled a lot during the day, thanks to her daughter and the fun they had in the park. And she laughed. She laughed when she was sitting with Hope and Scott on the front porch of her home, having dinner and drinking lots of wine. There, in that moment, she was happy. She forgot all about the pain for a minute, the agony, and was just grateful for the caring and loving—and funny—friends she had. But when the night came, and she went to bed, she was back in that hole, back with that dark and empty void in her heart. She let herself cry for only a minute or two, too worried that her daughter could hear her again, and then she stopped. She just stopped, and it seemed so easy.

When the door was pushed open, and footsteps sounded on the wood floor, she almost jumped. The moonlight fell upon her daughter's soft features, and the little girl didn't say a word as she climbed up and into bed with her mother and threw her arms around her, hugging her tightly. Pepper snuggled up to her, closing her eyes. She listened to the sound of Morgan's breathing, which was calm and soothing, and just let the warmth of her child embrace her, and embrace her heart like a shield, protecting her from the outside world.

"I'm here, Mommy," Morgan whispered in a voice so warm and loving it would have drawn tears from a heart of stone. "Everything will be okay."

Pepper's smile reached her ears, as she lay silent with tears wet on her cheeks—tears of happiness, tears of love, tears of a mother who loved her child with everything that she had to give, completely and forever. And for the first time in weeks when Pepper closed her eyes, nightmares didn't play out against her lids.


	6. In Sickness and in Health

**_A/N: _**_Anoth__er prompt: __M__organ is sick and all she wants is her mama._

* * *

Pepper came into the bathroom and stood close beside him. She rested her head against his shoulder. Her arm snaked around his waist, and she sighed, long and deeply.

"How is she?"

"Back asleep. Finally."

"Thank God!" Tony slid his hand down her arm to clasp her fingers and put his other hand on the small of her back, drawing her closer.

"I gotta go," she said, tilting her head to kiss his cheek, and when he looked at her, she pecked him, smiling against his lips.

"You can't leave me, Pepper." His eyes were pits of concern, and his face looked drawn from worry and stress.

"Honey, you'll be okay," she reassured him with a smile. "Just call me if there's an emergency." She stole one last glance at herself in the mirror and adjusted her hair, then turned around to face him. "And I mean a _real_ emergency, like her temperature rising, not you running out of tea."

"I don't know if I can do this," Tony said, "She's been sick for days and—"

"Tony..." Taking his face in her hands, Pepper kissed him gently. "Everything will be fine, okay? She'll be asleep for at least another hour, and when she wakes up, I'm sure she just wants breakfast and a movie, so there's nothing for you to worry about, trust me."

Tony closed his eyes to the touch of her lips against his forehead, and sighed. "I trust you," he replied. "I just don't trust that flu."

Pepper laughed softly.

"It's been killing me!"

"Don't be such a baby," she said, smirking. "Be a man, darling." He harrumphed, and it made her chuckle. "I'll be back by four. Love you."

"Love you too." Tony watched, as she walked out the door, then called after her, "Tonight I'll show you how much of a man I am."

"I can't wait!" she called back, laughing.

A few hours later, when she was having a board meeting, her assistant Jenna poked her head in, looking very uncomfortable, and cleared her throat before she spoke, "I'm sorry, Pepper, it's—"

"I know," Pepper said, sighing. "What does he want?"

"He's been calling non-stop. Something about Morgan? Do you want to take it here or...?"

"No, definitely not." Pepper got up from her chair and gave everyone in the room an apologetic look. "Excuse me, gentlemen, but I really have to take this. Sick child," she explained in just a few words and walked out the door. "How many times did he call?" she asked, as she headed to her office, with Jenna walking right next to her.

"About five times."

"Fi—" She combed her fingers through her hair, trying not to worry. "Do you know what's wrong? Did she throw up again? Is it the fever? Did he say anything about having to rush her to the hospital?"

Jenna shook her head. "No, he just said... He said he needed to talk to you. That it was urgent."

"It better be," Pepper mumbled. "Put my husband's call through to my office," she said to her receptionist, as she swung open the door.

"He's already on line one."

"Of course he is." Pepper laughed, rolling her eyes a little. Then she sat down at her desk and took the call.

"Oh my God, Pep! I tried calling you on your cell, but it went straight to voice mail, so I tried calling Allie and then Jenna, and—"

"What's wrong?"

"You need to come home."

"But I'm at work."

"Our daughter is sick."

"Yeah, I know that. That's why I told you to call me if there's an emergency. Is this an emergency, Tony?"

"No, she's fine. Well, uh, apart from the fever, coughing, and— Pep, you don't understand. All she wants is her mama." He could read volumes into the silence at the other end. She was obviously thinking it over, while at the same time cursing him for making her worry. "She won't let me see her, like, the second I open the door to her room she screams for you. I don't know what's wrong with her. Please come and rescue me... Please!"

"I tell you what's wrong with her," Pepper said, "She's taking after you. That's why she's so cranky when she's sick," and Tony could hear the smile in her voice. "It's probably just a phase, babe."

"This _phase_ has been going on for two hours, Pepper. I even tried inviting Gerald to cheer her up."

"You took the alpaca inside the house?"

"I _tried_," he corrected her.

"I have a very important meeting later. I can't just leave."

"What kind of meeting could be more important than your daughter?"

"Oh, c'mon, Tony. That's not fair. You know how hard it was for me to leave her like that." She sighed deeply. "Elon and I are having lunch together, and he canceled on me so many times. It can't wait. But I promise you I'll be home as—"

"I didn't know you and Musk were still talking."

"Don't act so surprised. You know he's part of the footprint coalition."

"Yeah, I know," he mumbled. "What I _didn't_ know is that you two were having lunch dates."

"You're so cute when you're jealous," she said, smirking.

"I-I'm not—" Tony gave a bit of a grunt and a sniff. "I'm not jealous."

"Of course not," Pepper replied, biting her lip not to laugh.

"It's just that you and I never had a lunch date," he argued.

"Oh, so all the times you and I had sex in my office don't count as a _date_?"

"Um, no... I mean, I-I'm talking about eating out." He paused, realizing what he'd just said, and it was like he could hear her eyebrows go up and her smirk widen, so he added, "Not _that_, Pepper. An actual meal."

She chuckled. "You seriously wanna take me out for lunch? You mean you would leave the comfort of our house and drive to New York _just_ to have lunch with me?"

"Of course I would." He almost sounded offended that she assumed it was such a big deal for him to do this. "I'm your husband."

Pepper tried not to laugh at the small wave of indignation that swept over him. Whatever was going on at home with their daughter really had him on edge. This was definitely not the best time to tease him or make jokes. He was all tensed up.

"Relax, honey," she said, smiling. Beneath her fingers the gold of her wedding band felt smooth and warm. She looked at the ring, and her smile grew. "I just think that's really sweet of you, and I'd be happy to have lunch with you some day."

There was a moment of silence, and then he spoke, "What if _I_ go to lunch with Elon Musk?"

Now, Pepper really couldn't help but laugh. "You would go to lunch with the man who—"

"Is one of the most annoying people on the planet? Yes!" he interrupted her. "If it means you're coming home to take care of our daughter... Besides, I'd much rather he has lunch with a person who loathes him than with my wife."

When she arrived at the lake house, he was already waiting for her on the patio, looking like a wounded puppy. "Thank God you're here to save me from the little monster."

"Tony!" she scolded him, "Our daughter is not a monster. She's just sick."

"She hates me!" Tony went straight into her arms. He drew a heavy breath of relief and sighed it out against her chest, nestling his face into her.

Pepper could feel all the tension leave his body as she put her hands up his back and lay her chin on his head. A smile pulled up at the corners of her mouth. "That's it, baby," she whispered. "Just relax." She let him rest for a minute, then she asked him where Morgan was, and he just mumbled the word bedroom. "You did great, honey."

"I'm the worst dad ever!"

"No, you're not," Pepper said, as she rubbed his back. "Our daughter just happens to be a lot like you."

"Then how come _I_ can stand me but she can't?"

She laughed softly. "There was a time when you couldn't stand yourself, remember? It'll pass."

"Yeah, okay... you have a point. So where's this lunch I'm supposed to be at?"

"Plugged the address into the car's GPS. Just promise me to drive safely. You're obviously under a lot of stress." She pulled back and smiled at him as she cupped his face and stroked his cheeks with her thumbs. "I don't want anything to happen to you."

Tony kissed her with a long passionate but slow kiss, with that mind-blowing tenderness that had captured her heart so completely. His fingers caressed her face, and when he looked at her, the love in his eyes came pouring out in a huge smile. "I love you," he rasped softly. "I really love you."

"I really love you too," she said, half smirking, half smiling. "Now go... And be nice to him."

"I'm always nice," he replied, laughing, as he walked to the car. "Especially to people who have a thing for my wife."

Pepper looked at him, grinning. He was such a fool. A complete idiot. But she was happy to know he was hers. Her man, her best friend and husband, the father of her child—the child that could be just as demanding and grumpy as him, especially when she was sick.

She went directly to her daughter's bedroom, and was surprised to find it empty. It took her a second to figure out that Tony had probably meant their bedroom. The door made soft creaking noises as she opened it, and she realized quickly that she was wrong to assume Morgan was asleep.

"No," she screamed. "Go away! I want Mommy!"

In the broad daylight, Pepper could see her daughter's small figure hiding under the covers, her stuffed alpaca lying on the floor. The fact she had settled on her side of the bed, not Tony's, made Pepper smile, and she halted for a moment, just looking at the small hill Morgan had created. Then she walked over, and the child kept complaining that she did not want to watch a movie or play a game unless he made Mommy come home.

"Mommy's here, baby," Pepper whispered, as she picked the stuffed animal up from the floor and put it on the nightstand.

Turning around, Morgan poked her head out. Her face looked suspicious as though she thought her father was imitating her mother's voice to soothe her, and Pepper figured it would not be surprising to know Tony had really done that.

"Mommy!" Morgan cried out, reaching for her mother.

Pepper bent down to take her into her arms. She hugged her daughter tightly to her chest, rubbing her back like she had rubbed Tony's before, and then she scooped her up and carried her to the en-suite bathroom.

"My body aches," the little girl whined as she was put down, and the look in her eyes pierced Pepper to the core. She hated to know that her child was hurting, to literally see the pain in her eyes.

"I know," she said, sighing.

She turned on the water in the bathtub and checked it with her hands to make sure it was not too hot. Then she started taking off Morgan's pajamas.

"Mommy's gonna give you a nice long bath now and then some medicine that will make you feel better, okay?"

"What about you?"

"What do you mean?" Pepper asked, smiling. "Are you saying you want me to join you?"

Morgan nodded.

"Well, I could really use a bath, too."

Pepper got in first, with her hair pinned up to keep it dry. She stretched out in the bath, resting her head back on the foam pillow. Morgan settled herself between her legs, leaning against her mother. Pepper wrapped an arm diagonally across her chest and kissed the top of her head.

"Mommy?"

"Yes, love?" Pepper murmured. She could stay in this bath forever. It was perfect. The only thing missing was Tony.

"Did we have baths when I was in your tummy?"

"A lot of them," she answered with a smile. "My back really hurt when I was pregnant with you, so one day, when I was very cranky, your daddy let the tub fill up, tossed in a handful of bath salts and told me to get in. And I realized that the hot water was really helping me with the pain so we had a bath twice a week."

"Daddy too?"

"Yes, Daddy was always with us." She smirked, thinking of all the times where Tony had distracted her from the pain by getting her high on sex—they should really do it again sometime.

Pepper washed Morgan's hair, playing around once in a while, putting bubbles on her nose. The laughter sounded sweet coming from her daughter. She loved the hugs and kisses she was getting.

"Close your eyes," she said, and rinsed the shampoo away with clear, warm water from the handheld sprayer connected to the faucet, and washed her face slowly with a clean washcloth and the face soap she always used. When she was done, she looked at her daughter and smiled. "How's that? Feeling any better?"

With a mischievous smile, the little girl drew back her arm and sent a big splash of water flying at her mother's face. Pepper gave a small startled yelp. Morgan laughed and splashed her again.

Pepper's eyes flashed vengefully when she blinked the water out of it. "Oh, this means war," she hissed, playfully, and then splashed her daughter heavily with the bath water. The girl splashed her back with gusto, and a noisy water fight ensued. With one last splash, Pepper bounded out of the water, grabbed one of the big soft towels, and began to dry herself.

"Look! Now you got my hair all wet," she complained. "You little monster."

Morgan giggled, trying to splash her again.

"Stop it!" Pepper made a quick step back, laughing. She wrapped the towel around her body, tucking one end of it inside the other to keep it in place, and rewound a smaller towel, turban-style, around her dripping hair. Then she lifted Morgan from the tub, drying her off and dressing her in a blue fluffy bathrobe hanging on the back of the door. "Why don't you go downstairs while I let the water out of the tub? I won't be long."

When she came into the main living area, Morgan was already lying on the sofa, snuggled into a light blanket. Pepper sat down at the edge, stroking the little suntanned face before putting her hand on her sick child's forehead. Then the thermometer confirmed her suspicion: She still had a fever. Sighing, she went to grab a glass of water and half a pill of acetaminophen.

"Take this, sweetie. That should make you feel better." She watched her daughter swallow down her medicine. "I'm so sorry, baby." Pepper said, as she leaned down to kiss Morgan's hair. Breathing in the scent of her shampoo, she closed her eyes. "You know Mommy would take away all of your pain if she could..." She kissed her temple, brushed the back of her hand across her cheek and looked softly into her eyes.

"Can we watch a movie?"

Nodding, Pepper smiled. "We can watch as many movies as you like." Then that smile turned into a smirk. "But only if we share the couch."

"But you can get sick too."

"I don't care," Pepper replied. "I just wanna be with my little girl."

"But what about work? Daddy said you have a lot of work and if you get sick you can't work."

"It's very sweet of you to think of my business, honey," Pepper said, chuckling, as she captured a wavering strand of her hair and smoothed it gently over her shoulder, "but if I have to choose between my work and being sick at home with my daughter, you know what I'd choose?"

"Me?" Morgan asked, giggling.

"I'd always choose you." Pepper smiled.

"What if you have to choose between me and Daddy?" Morgan said with a frown.

"I hope I'll never have to choose between either of you," Pepper answered, laughing. "I love you both so much. That's not a decision I can make."

"If I had to choose between you and Daddy..." She paused, as though she was really thinking about it, then she continued, "I would choose not to say anything."

Pepper emitted a soft chuckle. "Now that's a really smart answer. I guess it means you love us both equally?"

Morgan nodded. "Sometimes I like you more than Daddy and sometimes I like him more than you."

Pepper raised an eyebrow, smirking. "So, what did I ever do to you for you to like me less than Daddy?"

"You say no a lot." Morgan emphasized the last word of her sentence by raising her voice, showed her dislike by rolling her eyes dramatically.

Pepper almost burst out laughing. "I'm well aware of the fact your father is a big pushover teddy bear," she said amused.

"Teddy bear..." Morgan giggled, covering her mouth with one hand.

"He's the same with me. He just loves us so much, he would do _anything_ for us," Pepper said with a smile. "We are really lucky to have him."

"Do you think Daddy is mad at me?"

"Why would he be, darling?"

"Because I didn't want him."

Pepper noticed the sad tone in her voice, so she put her hand to Morgan's head and stroked it in a soothing manner. "He could never be mad at you, Morgan," she reassured her. "Sometimes a little girl just needs her Mommy. Your daddy understands that."

"Really?" Morgan sounded hopeful.

"Really," she answered. "Even Daddy just wants Mommy sometimes," she added, making Morgan giggle. Settling down next to her daughter on the couch, Pepper draped her arm over Morgan's body to hold her tight. "Now, what movie do you want to watch, baby?"

"The wedding movie."

"Daddy's and mine?"

Morgan nodded slightly.

"That's my favorite movie," she whispered, a wave of happiness engulfing her as she thought of all the memories, and she smiled, kissing the back of her daughter's head.

"You look so pretty," Morgan said quietly when FRIDAY started playing the video of Tony and Pepper's wedding that Happy had recorded.

Pepper laughed softly. "Thanks, honey." She had seen the recordings so many times, but every single time she watched the video, she cried.

Morgan noticed her mother's tears and took her hand to squeeze it. Then she kissed Pepper's palm and smiled. "I love you, Mommy."

"I love you too, sweetheart."

Towards the end of the video, Morgan was sleeping soundly, and about an hour later, Pepper had fallen asleep, too. She was awakened by the sound of her husband's voice.

"C'mon, let's get you to bed," he whispered, as he lifted her from the couch and carried her upstairs.

"What about Morgan?" Pepper mumbled, keeping her eyes closed while he walked.

"Already in bed."

"How was your date?"

"I wanted to strangle him whenever he opened his mouth," Tony sniffed. "Still do, by the way."

She laughed out loud, and then looked at him, stroking his cheek. "You know you're the best husband in the world, don't you?"

"Only in this world? Or in all worlds?" he quipped, as he lay her down on their bed and leaned over her, with his hands cupped around her face and a smirk on his lips.

"In the whole entire _universe_," Pepper said, smirking back at him.

Tony's chuckle whispered against her brow as he pressed his lips there. "That sounds better."

She took his face into her hands and pulled it close so she could kiss him. "Help me out of this towel."

Pepper had barely finished that sentence when Tony had already ripped the towel from her, taking her in a wild rush of lust and greedy need.


	7. Intimacy

**_A/N: _**_Little Morgan is innocent and sweet and really needs her mom, so that's what my main focus will be, but I just felt like writing an older version of her and it probably won't be the last time I do this. Though this is not how I imagined it to turn out, I still think it's worth publishing, so there you go :')_

* * *

"Mom? Do you mind if I sit with you?"

Dressed in a gray sarong dress with a bikini underneath, Pepper lay sprawled on a sun lounger by the lake, looking like a swimsuit model with her long legs, reddish hair, and golden skin. The large white linen sunhat she wore shaded the features of her face and her blue eyes were hidden behind mirrored Ray-Bans. At the sound of Morgan's voice, she glanced away from her book to smile at her daughter.

"Not at all, honey," she answered, patting the chair beside her. "Sit."

Morgan put her glass of lemon water down on the small side table, then sat cross-legged on the lounger, with her toes tucked under her.

Pepper lifted her sunglasses and propped them atop her head so she could have an unfettered view. "What's up?"

"I just wanted to talk to you about something."

"That sounds serious," Pepper noted, smiling.

"Well, I can't talk about this with Dad, because if I so much as _mention_ a boy's name he freaks out and threatens to hack the FBI's servers to do a background check," Morgan groaned.

Pepper laughed. "I'm sorry, baby." She gave her daughter an apologetic look, her lips curved into a smile. "Your father is really protective of you. He's been that way ever since you were born."

"Do you think he'll ever _stop_ being that way?" the 16-year-old asked with a mischievous grin.

"No," Pepper answered, chuckling. She cuffed her playfully around the ear. "So this is about a boy?" Raising an eyebrow, she smirked. "Do I know him?"

"He's the one taking me to dancing classes."

Pepper's eyes widened, her jaw dropping. "But you said... I thought you were going with Cassie. Oh, my God, you lied to us!"

Her mother's shocked expression made Morgan laugh. "I _was_ going with Cassie. I mean, at first. But then I met this boy and we started dancing together and—"

"Oh, I wish your dad would take me dancing," Pepper blurted out her thoughts, sighing. She took a sip of her martini and moaned. "Is that too much to ask?"

"I'm sure if Dad could see you right now, he'd do anything for you," the girl remarked and gave her a wink.

Pepper laughed softly at her daughter's comment. "Are you saying my best chance to get him to do what I want is to get naked?"

"Ew, no!" Disgusted, Morgan shook her head, as if trying to shake away the image settling in her mind.

"You're right... If I do _that_, Tony and I probably end up—"

"Mom, please shut up!" Laughing, Morgan reached over and covered her mother's mouth with her hand, silencing her. "I really need your advice."

"On what?" she asked, curious. "Do you wanna have sex with that boy? 'Cause, you know, I think you shouldn't rush into anything, darling."

Morgan arched an eyebrow at her. "Yeah, and how old were you when you—"

"Sixteen," Pepper said with a chuckle. "It wasn't great, though. I mean, not like the first time with your father. That was—" She halted when she saw her child covering her ears with her hands. Pepper chortled, putting her feet on the ground and directly facing her daughter. She set her book on the side table, leaned her upper body forward, and rested her elbows on her thighs, folding her hands in her lap. "I'm all ears now."

Morgan grinned. "I think in order to have sex with him, I should go out with him first."

"God, you're so smart," she called out. "You really are my daughter."

"Mom, this is serious. Stop being such an idiot," the teenager said, laughing.

With a smile, Pepper took Morgan's hands into hers. Her thumbs spread across her knuckles and slowly and gently rubbed the soft skin. "How about you just ask, hm?" She raised one hand, her fingers grazing her daughter's cheek. "You two have been dancing together for a while now, so I'm pretty sure he'll say yes."

"Really?" She smiled.

"You're Pepper Potts' daughter, babe. He'd be a _fool_ not to go out with you."

"I thought Dad was the narcissist," she quipped.

"I have my moments," Pepper said proudly, joking, as she took off the sunhat and ran her free hand through her tousled ginger hair. "So, that guy... Does he have a name? What does he look like? Is he cute? I'm sure he must be handsome. I think the fact he can dance makes him really sexy."

"That sounds so gross considering you're, like, sixty years old." Morgan shuddered at the idea of her mother finding her crush attractive, and laughed.

"Hey, I'm not _that_ old_," _Pepper complained. "Yet." She grinned. "But, you know, I just think, even at a young age, it's nice to have someone who's—"

"Sexy?" Morgan teased, wiggling her eyebrows.

"Attractive in a physical way, yes... even though I think real beauty is only found in the heart... And who excites you and makes you feel alive just by the way they pay attention, take your hand... and the way their eyes meet and hold yours... the cool and confident way they kiss you. Confidence is _really_ sexy actually." Pepper smirked. "And you know your dad has _loads_ of it."

"I noticed," Morgan said, amused.

"He may be an old man now... well, old_er_... but he's still incredibly sexy."

"Here we go again," Morgan mumbled.

"What?"

"Oh, nothing. Go on," she said with a wide grin.

Pepper eyed her suspiciously. "Are you making fun of me?"

"I think you should ask him out," the teen answered, chuckling.

"Who?"

"Mom, all you do is talk about that guy. You must really like him, so I think you should ask him out." She paused. "And please do not get naked in front of him. That might be too much."

Pepper grinned. "It's Tony Stark, though. I think he's seen a lot worse."

"Yeah, but you'd embarrass the hell outta me and you don't wanna embarrass your daughter, do you, mother?" Morgan snitched the hat from her and put it on her own head. "You want my advice?"

"Only if it's good advice," Pepper joked, trying to keep a straight face.

"Just be yourself," Morgan replied. "You're Pepper freaking Potts, so you already have _a_ _lot _going for you."

"You think so?"

"I know so."

"Should I bring condoms?"

"Absolutely not." Morgan shook her head vigorously. "Don't sell yourself short. Let him grovel. If he wants to have sex with you, he has to _earn_ it."

The smirk on Pepper's face grew. "Is that how it works these days? No more sex on the first date?"

"Mhm-hm. You're practically a dinosaur, so I'm teaching you a few important things here."

"Thank you, honey. That's really sweet." Judging by the smirk on her daughter's face, she found it as amusing as she did. They looked at each other, clamped their hands over their mouths and burst into laughter, anyway. "You know, this makes me really comfortable about you going out on a date," Pepper admitted.

"How can you be so sure I wasn't joking?" Morgan asked, smirking.

"Because you're my daughter, and you value yourself too much to go out and... do... _that_."

Morgan smiled. "To be honest, mom, I think I'm actually a bit scared of intimacy. Not so much of the physical kind, you know, but the emotional one. I just have such a hard time to… be vulnerable... open up. I don't know. Like, sometimes I feel like I'm hiding myself in fear of being fully seen. Is that a… Is that a bad thing?"

"Well, you certainly didn't have a problem with being, um, _out-there _when you were little." Pepper chuckled. "But no, sweetheart, it isn't," she assured her. "It just means that you're cautious and care a lot about protecting your heart." Smiling lovingly, her voice became soft and mellow, sweeter. "Your dad's the same. I mean, he's changed but... in some ways, he's still that guy. So, whenever he tells me how he really feels... opens up to me… it still surprises me sometimes. It touches my heart deeply, and that can't really be a bad thing, right?"

She looked at her daughter and saw the eyes of the man she loved looking back at her. She was so strikingly beautiful, inside and out. One of those rare beauties who did not fully comprehend her allure. A teenager now but forever her baby girl.

"Now, I'm not gonna pretend that you don't have to learn how to let people in... how to trust someone, someday, because I've experienced firsthand what keeping it all in does to a person, but you do that in your own time, Morgan. You choose when you are ready to share. Don't let anyone do that for you." Pepper gently stroked her arm. "You know, I was really hurt for a while when your father didn't let me see what was really going on with him. I was hurt, because I knew how much _he_ was hurting. I wanted to help him. I knew pushing him wouldn't get us anywhere, so I just waited. And girl, did I _wait_!" She laughed out loud. "I waited so long for him to understand the importance of sharing. How sharing your fears with your partner means that you share the burden, too. But it was all worth it in the end, because he opened up to me on his own terms... for _himself_... not because I pressured him to do it. He just realized he could show himself to me, show me his truth, and that was really touching."

"And what did you do?"

"I just hugged him. Let him know he was safe with me," Pepper answered with a soft smile, and deep emotion in her voice. "There's a reason being physically intimate with someone is a lot easier for most people than emotionally. It takes a lot of courage." She paused. "It took _me_ a lot of courage to tell your dad how scared I was of losing him for good after he..." She swallowed hard. "After he was out of the coma and back home with us. I didn't wanna burden him with my feelings, not after all the terrible things he went through, but, you know, what I realized was that _I_ went through it all too... _just_ like he did... only in a different way. And when those nightmares didn't stop, and I was literally becoming sick with fear, I realized the only way I could be myself again, especially around him, was to open up and let him in. So, you see, intimacy is hard, and it's difficult, but it's also an anchor for when the going gets tough and it can be the constant reassurance that you aren't alone." Smiling, Pepper reached out, tucking a strand of hair behind Morgan's ear. "And you, my darling daughter, shouldn't even be worrying about intimacy at such a young age." She brushed her lips across her temple and kissed her there. "Just have fun, okay? Enjoy yourself."

When then their eyes met, Morgan smiled at her. "I'll do my best."

"Great," Pepper replied, grinning.

"Is it different, though?"

"Is what different?"

"With dad's arm... Do you feel... Is it... I don't know... Strange? Maybe?"

"You mean when we..."

"I mean in general but, yes, that too. Were you scared it would change the way you feel?"

Pepper nodded. "I was, but then we talked about it before... being intimate… and it made me feel less scared. It did feel different at first, though, you know, with the cold metal. But it also reminded me of how lucky I was to even be able to share that intimacy with him. And your father has always been so gentle and soft with his touch, it almost felt like his arm was still made of flesh. Now that he uses nano tech, his touch is just... warmer... in some places."

"Oh, my God!" Morgan screwed up her face. "I need you to stop right there... TMI."

"You asked, baby." Laughing, Pepper emptied her drink. Then she looked at her daughter with a big grin. "Care for a swim?"

"Just... one more question." Morgan shifted uneasily in her seat. "If... What if I'd go out with a girl?"

"Honey, the idea of you dating someone is already making your dad freak out. I don't think he could handle it if you dated two people at the same time."

Morgan laughed. "No, I mean... If that boy were a girl would it bother you?"

"Are you saying you may be..." The young girl nodded. "And you really think that'd bother me?"

"I don't know." She paused, staring long and hard at her mother. Then she shook her head. "No."

"You're right. It doesn't," Pepper said with a smile. "Because you can't choose who you fall in love with. I mean look at us... your dad and I... Don't think for a second that I chose to fall in love with him. That was beyond my control." She laughed softly. "But I _chose_ to keep loving him when our world was falling apart 'cause of some of the things he did. And I don't regret a single thing. I got to marry the _love_ of my _life_." Her own words made her emotional. "And if the love of _your_ life turns out to be a woman, I couldn't be happier for you." Pepper cupped her daughter's cheeks. "I just want you to find someone who loves you the way your father loves _me_." Her eyes were glassy with tears, as she whispered, "Completely and forever."

"The way _you_ love me?" Morgan said quietly.

"No one can _ever_ love you the way _I_ love you, ma petite sirène. Not a single soul."

"Not even Daddy?" She grinned.

"I outlove that man any day of the week." Pepper's smirk morphed into a soft smile. As she looked at her daughter, she saw stop-motion flashes of Morgan's life from newborn to now. It made her ache with indescribable love. That girl had no idea how she adored her then and still adored her and would adore her forever and ever. Just thinking about it made Pepper cry.

Morgan chuckled, then stared at her in silence for a moment, just watching her stare back, smiling through tears. She couldn't remember ever seeing her mother cry. Not once. Not ever. But she was crying now. Because of her. And it touched her heart to see the emotion in her eyes, to see just how loved she really was. It touched her feelings where they were most vulnerable. Suddenly she felt tears trickling down her cheeks, and she figured, this right here, that was real intimacy.

"I love you so much, Mom… Completely and forever," she whispered, and placed her mouth next to hers, kissing her wet cheeks, before throwing her arms around Pepper's neck and embracing her in a tight hug.


End file.
